Media

Tim Buckley said the partnership between Australia’s SunDrive and leading Chinese solar panel manufacturer Trina is a strong positive for the federal government’s Solar Sunshot program and broader Future Made in Australia strategy. Read more

Tim Buckley says the partnership of leading Australian solar start-up SunDrive with China’s Trina solar is a great opportunity for the Australian industry to benefit from China’s clean energy nous to accelerate decarbonisation. Read more

Tim details CEF’s new report on the $100bn plus in cleantech capital China is investing around the world into solar, wind, EVs, batteries and more, including what Australia needs to go to attract this capital to speed our energy transition. Read more

The International Energy Agency’s Renewables 2024 report has forecast Australia will add 53 GW of renewable capacity between 2024-2030, with a nearly 65% share being from a mix of utility, rooftop and green hydogen production solar. Independent think tank Climate Energy Finance Director Tim Buckley said the IEA now models a continued increase in global renewables deployments to 940 GW annually by 2030, a 70% increase in the record of 2023. “This shows a global ‘bending of the curve’, very overdue in light of the climate science, but a deployment rate considered impossible only a few years ago,” Read more

Tim Buckley responds to the IEA Renewables 2024 report: “Thanks largely to China, we now have the global cleantech manufacturing capacity to accelerate deployments of renewables significantly to achieve the goal set at last year’s UN Climate Conference to treble renewables to 2030. The massive deflation of prices for renewables technologies and the drive for energy security both favour accelerating investment as the world looks to mitigate the escalating climate crisis of climate change.” Read more

As John Hewson and Tim Buckley write, i the one-page nuclear policy pamphlet the LNP released in June, federal opposition leader Peter Dutton states that “of the world’s 20 largest economies, Australia is the only one not using nuclear energy, or moving towards using it.” Even this claim lacks credibility and relies on half-truths – so no wonder Dutton and his nuclear-spuiking sidekick Ted O’Brien are failing to get buy-in on their delusion from those in their own party, let alone most experts. Read more

Energy analyst Tim Buckley is director of think tank Climate Energy Finance and said the battle for Korea Zinc, the world’s largest zinc refiner, was globally significant. “To me it looks like two Korean families who have cooperated together for a long time and now there is a divergence of views and one of the Korean families has brought in one of the most successful Korean private equity firms, MBK, to come in and buy control,” he said. But Mr Buckley said it was simply too soon to predict ramifications on the move towards “green” zinc in Australia and Ark Energy’s renewable energy projects. “There is a fear that the company could go through a major strategic pivot, but to some degree we’re incidental to the central game plan in Korea,” he said. Read more

Climate Energy Finance (CEF) has highlighted the billion-dollar opportunity in China’s outbound “green capital tsunami”. A new report from the think tank reveals Chinese firms have committed upwards of US$100 billion to outbound foreign investment since 2023 – spanning decarbonisation sectors like solar, wind, and green hydrogen – as the country’s corporates increasingly “go global”. And while other regions of the world have reaped the rewards of this unprecedented investment program, CEF notes that investment in Australia has been comparatively, “exceptionally weak”. Read more

[On Oil Price]China is investing heavily in electric vehicle assembly plants, battery plants, and transition technologies abroad to counteract Western tariffs. Chinese companies are not only expanding manufacturing capacity but also exporting technology, engineering, supply chain, and financing expertise globally. European and U.S. companies are struggling to compete with cheaper and often superior Chinese EVs. Read more

[On Accounting Times]In a new report, think tank Climate Energy Finance (CEF) said the wave of investment opportunities from the world’s second-largest economy was mostly bypassing Australia and going to markets in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America instead. Analyst Xuyang Dong, one of the report’s co-authors, said investment from Chinese firms brought a range of benefits including technology, expertise, capital and experience. “Australia should work actively with China, transforming our historic dig-and-ship economy in order to not be left behind in the global race-to-top on energy transition,” he said. “Joint ventures with China have enormous potential to boost Australia’s decarbonisation trajectory.” Read more

“China’s growing domination of cleantech manufacturing and export supply chains is clearly a geopolitical issue the U.S. and the Western world can’t continue to ignore,” said Tim Buckley and Annemarie Jonson at Sydney-based think tank Climate Energy Finance. “It is far from a secure, sustainable position for any country to dominate 80% to 90% of global market supply of anything,” they told The Wall Street Journal after CEF released a report on the surge in China’s outbound foreign direct investment into clean energy. Read more

Tim Buckley from Climate Energy Finance shares insights on China’s $100 billion investment in global clean tech projects. He notes the dominance of China in this sector and highlights the opportunities presented by increased trade tensions with the US and Europe. Tim observes that while Australia benefits from China’s renewable and battery project investments, there’s a lack of manufacturing investment in Australia by Chinese tech leaders. Collaboration with China is crucial, and Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ visit to China aims to enhance such partnerships. Australia must clearly present rules of engagement for Chinese private companies. While the US takes a protectionist stance, Tim stresses Australia’s need to cooperate with China, its top trade partner, ensuring mutual economic benefits amidst potential US-China trade tensions. Read more