Look past the windmills and tulip fields, because the Netherlands' industrial engine is roaring, contributing a substantial €186.5 billion to the national GDP in 2022.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, the Dutch manufacturing industry contributed €186.5 billion to the gross value added, representing 11.2% of total GDP
- Dutch manufacturing production volume increased by 1.3% in September 2023 compared to September 2022
- The chemical manufacturing subsector in the Netherlands produced €52.3 billion in value added in 2022
- The manufacturing sector employed 737,000 people in 2022
- In 2022, manufacturing jobs accounted for 10.1% of total employment in the Netherlands
- Chemical manufacturing employed 92,000 workers in 2022
- Netherlands exported €178.4 billion in manufacturing goods in 2022
- Chemical products exports from Netherlands reached €92.1 billion in 2022
- Machinery and electrical equipment exports totaled €58.3 billion in 2022
- Netherlands total primary energy supply was 3,232 PJ in 2021
- Natural gas accounted for 38% of Netherlands total energy consumption in 2021
- Renewable energy share in total final consumption reached 14.4% in 2021
- Manufacturing R&D expenditure was €12.5 billion in 2021, 52% of total business R&D
- Netherlands ranked 5th in EU for R&D intensity at 2.3% of GDP in 2021
- High-tech manufacturing R&D spending €6.8 billion in 2021
The Netherlands' manufacturing sector contributes significantly to GDP and exports, particularly chemicals and food.
Employment in Industry
- The manufacturing sector employed 737,000 people in 2022
- In 2022, manufacturing jobs accounted for 10.1% of total employment in the Netherlands
- Chemical manufacturing employed 92,000 workers in 2022
- Food, drink and tobacco sector had 432,000 employees in 2022
- Metal products manufacturing jobs totaled 78,000 in 2022
- Electrical equipment sector employed 45,000 in 2022
- Machinery manufacturing had 72,000 employees in 2022
- Transport equipment manufacturing employed 38,000 workers in 2022
- Rubber and plastics sector jobs were 52,000 in 2022
- Pharmaceutical manufacturing employed 28,000 in 2022
- Average hours worked per manufacturing job were 1,420 in 2022
- Manufacturing labor costs per hour were €38.2 in 2022
- Paper manufacturing employed 22,000 workers in 2022
- Textile sector had 12,000 jobs in 2022
- Wood manufacturing employed 28,000 in 2022
- Unemployment rate in manufacturing was 2.8% in 2022
- Part-time employment in manufacturing was 25.4% of jobs in 2022
- Female employment share in manufacturing was 28.7% in 2022
- Manufacturing employment decreased by 1.2% from 2021 to 2022
- Temporary jobs in manufacturing were 12.3% in 2022
- Self-employed in manufacturing numbered 45,000 in 2022
- Youth employment (15-25) in manufacturing was 8.5% in 2022
- Manufacturing wage index rose 5.1% in 2022
- Average manufacturing wage was €45,200 annually in 2022
- Vacancy rate in manufacturing was 3.2% in Q3 2023
- Manufacturing employment growth was -0.5% in Q3 2023
- Skilled labor shortage in manufacturing affected 65% of firms in 2023
- Manufacturing jobs in SMEs (1-49 employees) totaled 320,000 in 2022
- Large firms (>250 employees) held 58% of manufacturing jobs in 2022
Employment in Industry Interpretation
While Dutch manufacturing hums along with a robust 737,000-person engine—over half its workforce concentrated in large firms—it's clearly navigating a paradox of high wages, shrinking employment, and a widespread skilled labor shortage that 65% of firms are desperately trying to plug.
Energy Production and Consumption
- Netherlands total primary energy supply was 3,232 PJ in 2021
- Natural gas accounted for 38% of Netherlands total energy consumption in 2021
- Renewable energy share in total final consumption reached 14.4% in 2021
- Wind energy production was 25.6 TWh in 2022
- Solar PV generation totaled 15.1 TWh in 2022
- Biomass energy contributed 57 PJ to renewable supply in 2021
- Netherlands produced 62 TWh of electricity from renewables in 2022
- Total electricity generation was 117 TWh in 2022
- Natural gas production fell to 12 bcm in 2022 from Groningen field decline
- Industry sector consumed 1,012 PJ of energy in 2021, 37% of total
- Refinery throughput was 72.3 million tons in 2022
- Heat production from renewables was 12.5 PJ in 2021
- Offshore wind capacity reached 2.5 GW in 2022
- Onshore wind capacity was 4.1 GW at end of 2022
- Industrial energy intensity decreased 1.8% in 2022
- Chemical industry used 412 PJ energy in 2021
- Greenhouse sector energy consumption fell 5.2% in 2022 to 92 PJ
- Total final energy consumption was 2,452 PJ in 2021
- Carbon capture utilization and storage capacity planned 2.5 MtCO2/year by 2026
- Hydrogen production target 3-4 GW electrolysis by 2030
- Electricity consumption by industry was 42 TWh in 2022
- Natural gas imports were 65 bcm in 2022
- Energy efficiency in industry improved 2.1% in 2021
- Biofuel blending in transport reached 12.5% in 2022
Energy Production and Consumption Interpretation
While the Netherlands’ energy story remains a complex tango between its deep-rooted natural gas legacy and its ambitious wind-and-solar-powered future, the real plot twist is an industrial sector sweating the efficiency details as it sips its coffee.
Exports and International Trade
- Netherlands exported €178.4 billion in manufacturing goods in 2022
- Chemical products exports from Netherlands reached €92.1 billion in 2022
- Machinery and electrical equipment exports totaled €58.3 billion in 2022
- Food and beverages exports were €32.7 billion in 2022
- Mineral fuels exports amounted to €45.6 billion in 2022
- Plastics and rubber exports reached €15.4 billion in 2022
- Pharmaceuticals exports were €28.9 billion in 2022
- Vehicles exports totaled €12.1 billion in 2022
- Germany was the top destination for Dutch manufacturing exports at €64.2 billion in 2022
- Belgium imported €28.5 billion in Dutch goods in 2022
- Manufacturing import value was €192.3 billion in 2022
- Trade balance for manufacturing goods was -€13.9 billion in 2022
- Exports to the US reached €18.7 billion for manufacturing in 2022
- France imported €17.4 billion Dutch manufacturing products in 2022
- UK exports from Netherlands manufacturing were €15.2 billion in 2022
- Manufacturing export growth to EU was 2.1% in 2022
- Non-EU manufacturing exports rose 8.4% in 2022
- Rotterdam port handled 467 million tons of manufacturing-related cargo in 2022
- ASML exported €20.5 billion in semiconductor equipment in 2022
- Unilever Netherlands exports food products worth €5.6 billion annually
- Shell Pernis refinery exported refined products €12.3 billion equivalent in 2022
- Manufacturing services exports were €42.1 billion in 2022
- China imported €9.8 billion Dutch manufacturing goods in 2022
- Italy exports €8.7 billion in 2022
- Manufacturing export price index increased 11.2% in 2022
Exports and International Trade Interpretation
The Netherlands, in a feat of economic alchemy, transforms a hefty import bill into a towering €178.4 billion export empire—powered by chemicals, machinery, and brains—yet still finds itself €13.9 billion in the red, proving that even a global titan can have an expensive shopping habit.
Innovation and R&D in Industry
- Manufacturing R&D expenditure was €12.5 billion in 2021, 52% of total business R&D
- Netherlands ranked 5th in EU for R&D intensity at 2.3% of GDP in 2021
- High-tech manufacturing R&D spending €6.8 billion in 2021
- ASML invested €3.2 billion in R&D in 2022 for lithography tech
- Philips R&D expenditure €1.7 billion in 2022 on health tech
- Chemical sector R&D was €2.1 billion in 2021
- Patent applications in manufacturing 4,500 in 2022
- R&D personnel in industry 112,000 FTE in 2021
- Government R&D funding to industry €1.9 billion in 2021
- Horizon Europe grants to Dutch industry €450 million in 2021-2022
- NXP Semiconductors R&D spend €2.3 billion in 2022
- Innovation box tax relief claimed €1.2 billion by manufacturing firms in 2021
- 68% of manufacturing firms innovated products in 2020-2022
- Process innovation in manufacturing 55% of firms in 2022
- R&D intensity in chemicals 4.2% of turnover in 2021
- Food industry R&D €850 million in 2021
- Eindhoven high-tech region R&D €8.5 billion in 2022
- Venture capital in Dutch industry startups €2.1 billion in 2022
- AI patents by Dutch industry 1,200 in 2022
Innovation and R&D in Industry Interpretation
The Netherlands clearly knows that true progress is not just a series of incremental patents, but rather a beautifully orchestrated ecosystem of public funding, brainpower, and corporate giants like ASML and Philips betting big on the future—all while deftly navigating a very favorable tax regime.
Manufacturing Output and Production
- In 2022, the Dutch manufacturing industry contributed €186.5 billion to the gross value added, representing 11.2% of total GDP
- Dutch manufacturing production volume increased by 1.3% in September 2023 compared to September 2022
- The chemical manufacturing subsector in the Netherlands produced €52.3 billion in value added in 2022
- In 2022, the food, drink and tobacco manufacturing sector output reached €44.1 billion in gross value added
- Metal products manufacturing in the Netherlands generated €15.7 billion in value added in 2022
- Electrical equipment manufacturing output was €12.4 billion in gross value added for 2022
- Machinery manufacturing contributed €11.8 billion to Dutch manufacturing value added in 2022
- Transport equipment manufacturing value added stood at €9.2 billion in 2022
- In Q3 2023, manufacturing turnover rose 2.1% year-on-year, driven by chemical products
- Manufacturing production in the Netherlands grew by 4.5% in the electrotechnical and machine sector in 2022
- Rubber and plastics manufacturing output was €8.9 billion in value added in 2022
- Pharmaceutical manufacturing generated €7.6 billion in gross value added in 2022
- The Dutch manufacturing purchasing price index rose 12.4% in 2022 compared to 2021
- Industrial production excluding energy fell 0.8% in August 2023 year-on-year
- Manufacturing working hours index was 102.5 in 2022 (2015=100)
- Paper and printing manufacturing value added €5.3 billion in 2022
- Textile manufacturing output contributed €2.1 billion to value added in 2022
- Wood manufacturing value added was €3.4 billion in 2022
- Manufacturing production volume index stood at 105.2 in 2022 (2015=100)
- In 2023, manufacturing turnover in domestic market increased 1.5% year-on-year
- Export market manufacturing turnover rose 3.2% in Q4 2023
- The manufacturing sector's intermediate consumption was €320.4 billion in 2022
- Dutch manufacturing gross output totaled €523.7 billion in 2022
- Capacity utilization in manufacturing averaged 81.2% in Q3 2023
- Manufacturing orders received increased 4.7% in Q3 2023 year-on-year
- In 2022, manufacturing value added per hour worked was €52.3
- Food manufacturing production grew 2.1% in 2022
- Chemical industry production volume rose 3.8% in 2022
- Metal industry production fell 1.2% in 2022
Manufacturing Output and Production Interpretation
The Dutch manufacturing sector, a titan of chemistry and calories contributing over €186 billion to the economy, proves that even a well-oiled machine can have a squeaky wheel, as seen in modest growth figures and stubbornly high costs.
Sources & References
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- Reference 3PORTOFROTTERDAMportofrotterdam.comVisit source
- Reference 4ASMLasml.comVisit source
- Reference 5UNILEVERunilever.comVisit source
- Reference 6SHELLshell.comVisit source
- Reference 7IEAiea.orgVisit source
- Reference 8ECec.europa.euVisit source
- Reference 9PHILIPSphilips.comVisit source
- Reference 10EPOepo.orgVisit source
- Reference 11NXPnxp.comVisit source
- Reference 12BRAINPORTbrainport.nlVisit source
- Reference 13DUTCHSTARTUPASSOCIATIONdutchstartupassociation.nlVisit source