The renewable energy industry in Australia has been experiencing rapid growth recently and has been driving change in an energy system that has long been reliant on fossil fuels. However, in a nation where mining and fossil fuel production are some of the biggest and most influential industries, the renewable energy sector is faced with many challenges.
Lately, there has been a lot of political debate about Australia’s energy future, and the role that renewables should play in it, as politicians look to improve affordability and reliability of supply. The industry has experienced uncertainty about the country’s long-term energy and climate change policy direction, considering how much it has varied with the many changes in leadership over the past decade.Thankfully, there are currently policies and measures in place to ensure that renewable energy will continue to contribute to the energy mix into the future including the Large-scale Renewable Energy Target, which will see electricity generation from renewables almost double in the next few years.
Australia has an excellent renewable energy resource, with the greatest potential in wind and solar. Hydropower has long been responsible for the largest share of renewable generation but now the wind and solar industries are growing rapidly. To date, onshore wind has been the leader in the new renewables sector in Australia however a promising large-scale solar industry is starting to emerge as investors and utilities look to diversify their generation portfolios.
To continue to read the full Australia, Federal Level report as part of our Research Series “The Future is Renewable: Targets and Policies by Country”, please click “Read More”.
