Our work

Tim Buckley’s presentation to the ALP National Conference in Brisbane, its key policy endorsement forum, sets out the challenge the US Inflation Reduction Act poses to Australia as it turbocharges US and global decarbonisation, and sets out what Australia need to do to urgently respond. Read more

Tim Buckley’s presentation to GMR Energy, a leading independent developer of energy storage assets in Australia, and a portfolio company of Gaw Capital Partners, an international private equity and asset manager with over US$36 billion under management. Read more

Tim Buckley speaks at the Centre for Future Work’s National Manufacturing Summit on the global energy transition and implications for Australia Read more

Global climate financing momentum is accelerating towards a decarbonised economy. Australia has a once in a lifetime opportunity to invest to generate affordable clean energy (SDG 7) create economic strength (SDG 8), responsible production (SDG 12) and act to mitigate climate change this decade (SDG 13). Read more

We review the PC’s recent report which completely fails to understand the scale and urgency of Australia’s opportunity to invest public capital in leveraging our world-leading energy transition resources, attract private capital and respond effectively to unprecedented global policy interventions that are re-drawing the geopolitical landscape as the world decarbonises. Read more

Australia’s imperative to create a mutually-beneficial bilateral agreement with South Korea, leveraging the US Inflation Reduction Act to complement Korea’s battery industry and value-add onshore. Read more

China Energy Policy Analyst Xuyang Dong argues that, despite the declining hydropower caused by climate change-led drought and heatwaves in China, China’s ambition and determination on energy transition remains intact. China showed heavier reliance on coal in May, while continues renewable expansion at the same time. Read more

Tim Buckley’s presentation to the June 2023 WA Renewables and Critical Minerals Superpower Summit details the extraordinary opportunity for WA to lead the world in renewables powered, value added critical minerals processing in the context of a massive global acceleration in energy transition policy and public and private capital flows. Read more

We analyse the Australian Critical Minerals Strategy 2023-2030 released today by the Federal Government. The focus on leveraging international trade agreements and partnerships to position Australia in global supply chain is laudable. However, the new funding – $500m to NAIF to support downstream processing – is a drastic underinvestment in the sector that fails to respond both to the scale of Australia’s opportunity as a potential world leader in value-adding our geostrategic minerals reserves onshore using our abundant renewables, and to the ambition of our trade partners and competitors the world over, such as the game changing ~$US800bn Inflation Reduction Act that is actively reshaping global energy dynamics. Read more

CEF sees unprecedented trade and investment opportunities, in the order of hundreds of billions of dollars, for Australia to “ship sunshine”, embodying decarbonisation in its exports by using its solar and wind energy to process its world-leading critical minerals reserves, and to power manufacturing of energy transition materials. Australia has a once in a century opportunity for investment in renewables, exports, technology and employment, including in and driven by solar. It should seize it. Read more

In this new position paper, Janaline Oh, executive director of Diplomats for Climate Action, and CEF director Tim Buckley identify 5 urgent finance reforms the federal government should put in place so as to mobilise capital at the scale and speed needed to secure Australia’s opportunity to position itself as a critical minerals and energy transition leader in a rapidly decarbonising world – including leveraging our world leading super capital pool and our nation-building, infrastructure and energy transition funding authorities such as the Future Fund and Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. Read more

China remains ahead in leading global cleantech investment during its domestic renewable energy expansion. While the investment in renewables is unevenly split across the world, China continues to mobilise capital to the Global South to help developing countries in energy transition. 2023 is the tipping point for China to peak its coal use as well as its emissions. Australia should seize this opportunity to work with China, as well as other countries, in order to become a renewable superpower. Read more