In Germany, we invested in the installation of the connection pipelines for two LNG terminals in 2025 due to increased capacity and in the construction of a new electrically powered compressor station. Our investments in the Netherlands related mainly to the construction of the WarmtelinQ heat transport network, investments in the Dutch national hydrogen network and regular replacement investments. In 2025, we deducted a grant of € 6.3 million (2024: € 9.6 million) from the carrying amount of the property, plant and equipment. The grant deducted here was issued for investments in the Rijswijk-Leiden stretch of the heat transport network.

Property, plant and equipment also includes a number of pipelines that are owned together with other network operators; this only concerns a number of German gas transmission pipelines, of which EUGAL and NEL are the most important. At year-end 2025, the carrying amount of our ownership share in these pipelines was € 481.9 million (year-end 2024: € 478.9 million).

For details of our contractual investment obligations as at year-end 2025, see note ‎28 ‘Off-balance sheet assets and obligations’.

The impairment totalling € 140.7 related entirely to our German gas transmission network. For more information, see note 3 ‘Impairment tests’.

Property, plant and equipment at year-end 2025 includes an amount of € 108.4 million (year-end 2024: € 108.4 million) for right-of-use assets under our leases. More detailed information on the associated lease liabilities can be found in note ‎18 ‘Lease liabilities’.

Depreciation periods and methods

We periodically review our IFRS depreciation periods and methods based on relevant assumptions and external developments. At year-end 2025, we assessed whether there was any reason to revise these depreciation periods or methods.

Our regulated assets fall within the depreciation frameworks imposed by the regulatory authorities in the Netherlands (ACM) and Germany (BNetzA). In its method decision for the 2027-2031 period, ACM continues to apply a long regulatory depreciation horizon for the gas transmission network, with depreciation periods of up to 55 years for main transmission pipelines. Here ACM applies a declining balance depreciation method to reflect the expected decline in network utilisation.

From 2026 onwards, KANU 2.0 will let transmission system operators in Germany determine their own regulatory depreciation periods within broad limits. The legislator has tentatively set 2045 as the possible target year, in line with German climate targets. In line with KANU 2.0, we have decided to shorten the depreciation periods for the regulated German natural gas transmission network to 2045 as of 2026. 

In determining our IFRS depreciation periods and methods, we considered both our own expectations regarding the future use of our infrastructure and the regulatory views of ACM, BNetzA and the German legislator. We thereby assumed, based on our own projections, that the natural gas transmission network will continue to be needed for security of energy supply over the coming decades. Other relevant factors include the delay in the development of alternative energy infrastructure and continued demand for LNG imports, which both indicate that the natural gas transmission network will continue to be utilised for the long term. On top of this, the existing infrastructure can also be used for biomethane or e-methane transport. These considerations led us to conclude that, as at year-end 2025, there is no reason under IFRS to revise the current estimate of the useful life of the natural gas transmission network to 2070.

Developments in hydrogen, CCS and the addition of further specifics to our Vision 2040 (as detailed in note 1 ‘Significant matters and events’) may influence our assessment of the economic useful life of the natural gas transmission network in the future. As these plans are further developed and greater clarity emerges regarding the (re)use of existing infrastructure, these insights may lead to a revision of IFRS depreciation periods.

For specific installations that will no longer be used in the medium term, we are accelerating depreciation up to the intended decommissioning date. Installations that can still be repurposed for hydrogen or CSS will be preserved for the long term.

We have no indications that the expected useful life of the other regulated assets, non-regulated assets and/or assets exempt from regulation is shorter than the current depreciation period.

We depreciate right-of-use assets in accordance with either the expected lease payments or expected useful life, whichever is the shortest. While we generally lease land owned by third parties for an indefinite period of time, we do have the option to terminate the lease at short notice. We determined the most likely lease term by looking at the useful life of the asset, such as a pipeline or a plant, for which we lease that land.