Labor announces specialist “growth centre” to nurture Australian made renewables

Federal Labor has promised a leg-up to Australian businesses seeking to locally manufacture clean energy technologies and other climate solutions, with the establishment of a specialist renewables industry growth centre.

Federal minister for science and industry Ed Husic said on Wednesday that the Albanese government would invest $14 million in a hub for emerging Australian-made solutions to the nation’s energy and emissions challenges.

Husic says the Powering Australia Industry Growth Centre will help businesses to commercialise technologies and ideas, encourage connections between critical minerals producers and renewables manufacturers and provide a First Nations Advisor to build First Nations business management capabilities in the sector.

“We want an agile, industry-led approach to growing our renewable technology industry,” Husic says.

“Industry Growth Centres are a proven way of delivering the sort of timely and targeted support to our renewable business leaders are calling for.

“There’s $3 billion in the National Reconstruction Fund for the renewable and low-emissions energy industries.

“Today’s announcement will help maximise that investment.”

The establishment of the Powering Australia Industry Growth Centre comes as the Albanese government comes under increasing pressure to deliver policies on the scale of the US Biden Administrations Inflation Reduction Act – a policy broadly credited with putting a rocket under northern America’s energy transition and putting it in pole position to capitalise on global decarbonisation.

Clean Energy Council chief Kan Thornton in February warned that the Biden’s IRA dwarfed the level of support Australian governments had provided for the clean energy transition, and threatened to leave Australia in the dust on renewables.

“Australia has a prime opportunity to become a clean energy superpower, but the brightest minds and the biggest wallets are now looking to the US for their best opportunity,” Thornton said at the time.

Husic says establishing the Powering Australia Industry Growth Centre delivers on federal Labor’s election commitment for an industry-led approach to enhancing our renewable energy industries.

It also builds on the recently announced establishment of Net Zero Authority to support emissions-intensive sectors and their workforces to transition into new clean energy industries.

The functions of the Net Zero Authority, which will be legislated through parliament, will include working with state, territory and local governments, existing regional bodies, unions, industry, investors, First Nations groups and others to support workers – such as those from the now shuttered Liddell coal plant – to access new employment, skills and support.

For regional communities built up around fossil fuels and other transitioning sectors, the new body will coordinate programs and policies to attract new clean energy industries and set those industries up for success.

Additional funding from the $1.9 billion Powering the Regions Fund was also earmarked to support existing industry and new clean energy industries, with the creation of a $400 million Industrial Transformation Stream.