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Australia’s transition to renewable energy appears to have been dealt a blow, with the nation’s biggest coal-fired power plant to be kept open longer than expected. Read more

Sun-soaked Australia’s lofty renewable energy ambitions were given a harsh reality check on Thursday, as looming electricity shortfalls delayed the long-awaited shutdown of the country’s largest coal-fired power plant. In many cases, nuclear makes sense for energy-deficient countries that had no domestic renewable options, such as Japan, energy analyst Tim Buckley told AFP. “Nuclear has no future in Australia,” he said. “Australia has not continuously built it, we have none of the skillset, none of the engineering, and none of the capacity for nuclear.” Read more

The federal government has set aside more than $500m to encourage battery production in Australia. But it’s not yet clear exactly how the scheme will work. The Government says it’s time Australia played a bigger role in battery production but some experts believe its the wrong place to invest. CEF’s Tim Buckley joins ABC Radio alongside Ed Husic, Minister for Industry and Science; Tony Wood, program director for energy and climate change, Grattan Institute; and New South Wales Energy Minister Penny Sharpe. Read more

Tim Buckley said: In the budget, we saw an excellent $21bn down payment. It is great to see that this is additional funding, not the usual political trick of rehashing previous press releases. The development of the production tax credit (PTC) model for critical minerals and green hydrogen to incentivise onshore value-adding is a very strong step forward, a clear acknowledgement that Australia can’t simply leave it to free markets when other countries have made such significant public interest interventions, undermining global trade. We particularly note the absence of any additional stimulus on “electrifying everything” and only $28m of new funding to better integrate consumer energy resources into the grid. Read more

The Federal Government has released its Budget 2024–25, which focuses on developing renewable energy and easing cost-of-living pressures. Climate Energy Finance (CEF) said the Future Made in Australia package would make it simpler to invest in Australia, and attract more global and domestic capital. CEF Founder and Director, Tim Buckley, said, “CEF has been calling for $100 billion of capital and Budget support over the coming decade to accelerate and turbocharge the development of zero-emissions industries of the future here in Australia. In the Budget we saw an excellent $21 billion down-payment. It is great to see that this is additional funding, not the usual political trick of rehashing previous press releases. Read more

Tim Buckley, founder and director of Climate Energy Finance said the Budget was an “excellent down-payment” that will give Australia enduring comparative advantage and resilient supply chains. It’s a “new front door for investors” with transformational proposals that will attract both global and domestic capital. “This is Australia’s biggest investment, employment, and export opportunity in a century.” Buckley called the critical minerals and hydrogen tax credits a “strong step forward” but highlighted the importance of additional future funding for electrification to attract private capital and urged Australia to front-load investment in this decade. Read more

Clean energy investors and policy experts have broadly welcomed the government’s multi-billion dollar funding package for green hydrogen and critical minerals but warn rigorous frameworks must be in place to ensure public money is not wasted. Also likely are a range of conditions to ensure only the projects with the strongest environmental, social and governance criteria were selected, according to Climate Energy Finance director Tim Buckley. This might include provisions to ensure local First Nations employment and requirements for the processing facilities to power themselves with renewable energy. Read more

Climate Energy Finance director Tim Buckley, who wants to see $100 billion of capital and budget support for net-zero industries over the coming decade, says the 2024-25 budget is a promising downpayment on this. “We clearly needed this budget to respond strategically, proportionally and fast, which it has done. “It shows a government that understands both this imperative to act to transition Australia to its future as a clean, green superpower and the opportunity cost and risks of not moving to secure Australia’s place in the emerging net zero world,” Buckley says – adding that, after “the travesty” of the Future Gas Strategy, “it was a relief to see zero new funding for fossil gas.” Read more

Tim Buckley, Founder of Climate Energy Finance said the development of the production tax credit (PTC) model for critical minerals and green hydrogen to incentivise onshore value-adding is a very strong step forward, a clear acknowledgement that Australia can’t simply leave it to free markets when other countries have made such significant public interest interventions, undermining global trade. This will leverage Energy Minister Bowen’s 82% Renewables by 2030 initiative, turbocharged by the 32GW Capacity Investment Scheme which is driving the rollout of utility scale firmed renewables by underpinning and catalysing private investment, meaning Australia can power our refineries with renewable energy so as to export embodied decarbonisation. Read more

In an exclusive interview with ecogeneration, Tim Buckley, director of Climate Energy Finance, provided insights into the Australian government’s latest federal budget and its implications for the renewable energy sector under the “Future Made in Australia” plan. “This (Federal Budget) significantly contributes to framing the ‘Future Made in Australia’ plan. It robustly allocates resources to the enabling institutions that the federal government aims to establish, fostering a clear strategy to articulate ambitious goals and expedite the development of high-quality renewable energy,” Buckley said. A key aspect of the budget is the $13.7 billion in production tax credits, with half allocated to value-adding in the critical mineral sector. According to Buckley, this is “a very necessary subsidy, in light of the ongoing massive interventions in other countries.” Read more

Tim Buckley, director of the Climate Energy Finance, talks extensively about the need for more extensive capital support in future budgets to help speed up the move towards renewable energy. He notes the recent budget’s significant strides towards decarbonisation and investment, particularly its $21 billion of new budget support, a $7.2 billion increase to the arena for grant funding for battery initiatives, and decarbonisation initiatives. However, Tim holds a desire to see a price on carbon both in Australia and in international trade, highlighting the significance of public strategic investment to propel Australia’s economy forward, while maintaining a green future. Read more

Five industries are targeted by the budget including renewable hydrogen, critical minerals processing, green metals, low carbon liquid fuels and clean energy manufacturing, including battery and solar panel supply chains. Director of Climate Energy Finance Tim Buckley said it was excellent to see the $21 billion down payment. “Tonight’s budget shows a government that understands both this imperative to act to transition Australia to its future as a clean, green superpower and the opportunity cost and risks of not acting to secure Australia’s place in the new net zero world economy, said Buckley. Read more