Net Zero Economy Authority’s Post

The Future Made in Australia (Omnibus Amendments No. 1) Bill 2024 is almost through the parliamentary process, and its passage has exposed different ways of seeing the Australian economy. The FMIA bill creates $22.7 billion in funding over the ensuing decade, more than half of which is tax incentives to encourage private investment in critical minerals, green hydrogen and manufacturing activities that support a future economy built on renewables.     The argument against the FMIA Bill is that it pushes taxpayers’ funds into private ventures that perhaps don't pass a commercial viability test. However, building the industrial capacity to sustain a decarbonising economy for the long term might require some assistance if Australia is to gain sovereign capability in the face of massive production scale in other countries. 

I’ve been following the Future Made in Australia (Omnibus Amendments No. 1) Bill 2024 as it goes through the parliamentary process, and I’ve noticed that its passage has exposed different ways of seeing the Australian economy. The FMIA bill creates $22.7 billion in funding over the ensuing decade, more than half of which is tax incentives to encourage private investment in critical minerals, green hydrogen and manufacturing activities that support a future economy built on renewables.     The argument against the FMIA Bill is that it pushes taxpayers’ funds into private ventures that perhaps don't pass a commercial viability test – this sort of concern should always be taken seriously. However, building the industrial capacity to sustain a decarbonising economy is bound to require some assistance if Australia is to gain sovereign capability in the face of massive production scale in other countries. 

I’m glad to see a budget that recognises the economic value of the green sector, particularly with tax incentives for renewables. Investing in sustainability isn’t just an environmental win but a sound financial strategy. However, with data centre demand set to grow significantly, I believe a clear framework is essential to manage these needs responsibly. I look forward to seeing the UK’s renewable investments lead to both economic and environmental progress.

Five key announcements in the budget as public service measures to secure the nation’s future prosperity with emerging technologies needed for Australia’s clean energy transition.

#MoneyControl covered #EKIEnergy expectations from #Budget2024 : Facilitating green FDI via international #carbonmarkets tops expectations for Budget 2024: EKI

The Senate’s Future Made in Australia review, released on Friday, has dissentions. Are the dissentions about demanding the perfect when urgency requires us to be realistic?  𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗹 𝗳𝘂𝗲𝗹𝘀. Concern: No investment in fossil fuels will reduce the opportunity to process critical minerals because heat sourced from renewable energy comes at huge upfront capital cost. To remain globally competitive processing will need to use natural gas for process heat until renewable energy is affordable. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀. Concern: Electrification products are not manufactured in Australia. Subsidising electrification products will provide economic benefit primarily to China. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱. Concern: Clean-tech companies are navigating a brutal investment environment. Waiting for exhaustive review will tip the scales toward taking IP offshore. The FMIA has already identified priority industries! 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀.Concern: Australia’s weak economic complexity means that specialised knowledge is in short supply even within Treasuries and the Productivity Commission. Sector Assessments will slow commercialisation down. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆. Concern: The Australian investor pool with the appropriate risk-profile is very small. We are dependent on making Australian clean-tech manufacturing attractive to foreign investors and owners. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗔𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗱 𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀. Concern: To support new industries governments need to take on risk to target private investment to strategic industries. After the GFC, the US Government provided loan guarantees to Solyndra (US$566m) and Tesla (US$465m) as stimulus and to speed up clean-tech. Tesla emerged successful but Solyndra failed. President Obama’s insight in October 2011 was: ‘𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘢, 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦, 𝘪𝘧 𝘸𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘸𝘦’𝘷𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵’. Battery-tech in Australia could help rebuild manufacturing to benefit from the global energy transition, but it needs pragmatic interventions not perfect ones.

Green Investment and the 2024 Spring Budget: What was Missing? As parliamentary debates ensue this week on the Chancellor's Spring Budget, this article delves into what was left out from the Green agenda. Delving into insights from MPs, and those within the green industry, Sue Ferns and Bob Anstey OBE, Chamber UK explores the importance of investing in Green energy to foster more job creation, contribute to the UK's levelling-up agenda, and analyses the cost-effectiveness of sustainable development. Read the full article at Chamber UK: https://lnkd.in/g9aGkRYZ #greenenergy  #UKParliament #UKpolitics #politics #politicsUK #government #springbudget #netzero #sustainability #levellingup #houseofcommons #cleanenergy #ukgovernment #westminster

Five key announcements in the budget as public service measures to secure the nation’s future prosperity with emerging technologies needed for Australia’s clean energy transition.

Yesterday’s budget marks a positive step toward establishing Britain as a clean energy superpower, with impactful investments in renewables, infrastructure, and incentives for sustainable growth. Tax breaks for renewable capital investment, paired with the increased windfall tax, reflect both a strong environmental and financial commitment, reinforcing green investment as a sensible economic strategy. While we’re encouraged by investment in regions like Scotland and the North of England, data centres—whose energy demand is projected to surge—need further strategic planning. We’re committed to supporting Britain’s net-zero journey with a circular economy approach, ensuring that our clean energy infrastructure remains resilient and future-ready. Read more on our response to the budget here... https://lnkd.in/ecpD468Z