The Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA (CME) acknowledges the release of the Commonwealth Government’s 62 to 70 per cent national emissions reduction target range for 2035.
The announcement was accompanied by new funding totalling $8.1 billion to assist heavy industry to decarbonise ($5 billion), as well as drive investment in renewable energy ($2 billion) and low-carbon liquid fuels ($1.1 billion).
CME Director Policy and Advocacy Anita Logiudice said the interim target range was a clear signal of Australia’s commitment to net zero by 2050 and determination to attract investment in low-carbon technologies.
“The new funding measures attached to the 2035 target range are welcome because we know concerted government action will be required to put in place the fundamentals needed for Australia to continue to thrive while meeting our commitments under the Paris Agreement,” Ms Logiudice said.
“Australia is in a strong position to leverage our longstanding trading partnerships, built on energy and minerals exported from WA, to secure a new wave of investment in carbon reduction and new net zero industries.
“But preserving the industries that have underpinned our economic success for generations must remain front of mind throughout the transition to net zero.
“Failing to protect our international competitiveness risks sending Australian industries abroad, costing thousands of jobs and opening the door to jurisdictions that have far lower environmental and safety standards than we do.”
Ms Logiudice said WA had a critical role to play supplying the world with the energy and minerals needed to decarbonise at a global scale.
“Our biggest contribution to the global pursuit of net zero will likely occur outside our State’s borders,” Ms Logiudice said.
“Fulfilling that role means WA has a unique decarbonisation pathway and our own emissions may not follow a linear path in the transition to net zero.
“Western Australia is strongly positioned with all the critical minerals needed for low-carbon technologies — and a proud track record as a reliable, world-class supplier.
“Governments, both State and Federal, must now work with industry at pace to unlock emissions-reducing investment across a range of sectors including low-emission electricity generation and storage, carbon capture and storage, low-carbon fuels, and new low-carbon industries such as hydrogen, ammonia and green iron.”
“Central to that task will be delivering environmental reforms that meaningfully speed up project assessments without compromising on the integrity and rigour of the approvals system.”
CME and its members support the Paris Agreement and its goal of limiting global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius and pursuing efforts to limit temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius, and accept the scientific consensus as assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).