Costing details absent in Labor’s ambitious renewables plan

Subsidies and mandates are at the heart of Labor’s plan to hit a 50 per cent renewable energy target by 2030.

The Macarthur wind farm in western Victoria.

More subsidies and mandates are at the heart of Labor’s plan to hit a 50 per cent renewable energy target by 2030.

Exactly how the renewable energy target will be achieved remains unclear. But Labor says it will offer rebates of $2000 on solar batteries to 100,000 households with a target of one million batteries by 2025. No modelling has been offered by Labor on the cost of its renewable energy pledges.

The Minerals Council of Australia said Australia needed a climate change policy that recognised the high relative emissions intensity of our economy.

The Coalition has estimated Labor’s 50 per cent target would double electricity prices and lead to the loss of industry. But Labor says investing in renewable energy and batteries would grow jobs and cut power bills.

Under Labor’s plan, investment in the Clean Energy Finance Corporation will be doubled to $10 billion to support new generation and storage across the country.

Green groups welcome Labor’s plans but said it should go further.

“While Labor has policies to accelerate clean energy deployment, they fall glaringly short on the need to rapidly replace Australia’s polluting coal-fired power plants and halt new coalmines like the Adani project,” the Australian Conservation Foundation said.

“No party can claim to be truly serious on climate change until it stops Adani and develops a strategy to accelerate the transition away from coal,” the ACF said.