I've been experiencing the same issue - as per OP's report - with the Steam version of TNO too, and I've never been able to properly fix it. The game doesn't really freeze, as in, if you go to Task Manager - when it gets stuck to a loading screen - and then come back to it, it keeps playing normal. It's super annoying, though, and completely breaks the atmosphere and the engagement, to me.
I've been told it could depend on a multitude of different factors: Nvidia drivers, the fact I play on an MSI gaming laptop (GS63 Stealth 8RE with a GTX 1060), a bug of some sort in the user profile's directory...
Reading @Vonyor last post, I feel kinda tempted to give this GOG version a try, also considered the current discount.
Post edited April 11, 2020 by Galdelico