The Federal Government has finally responded to the Warburton Review confirming its intention to scale back the Renewable Energy Target (RET).
In a statement, Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane said the government is committed to a target that represents a "real 20 per cent" of electricity production in Australia, pointing out it was the original bipartisan intent.
"The government will begin good faith negotiations with the Labor Party in the spirit of bipartisanship that the Coalition has always shown on renewable energy policy. It was the Howard Government that introduced the Renewable Energy Target in 2001," he said.
Macfarlane confirmed support for household solar systems will not be changed but two-yearly reviews of the RET will be removed.
"We look forward to constructive discussions with the Labor Party with a view to providing certainty for the renewable energy sector while better reflecting the market need for new generation, restoring competitiveness to industry and providing electricity price relief to households," Macfarlane said.
While the government's response rejects recommendations in the Warburton Review it will still have a battle on its hands to get support in parliament.
The target legislated in 2009 was set at 41,000 gigawatt hours, which based on electricity demand at the time would have represented 20 per cent of the electricity produced in Australia in 2020.
But in recent years, electricity demand has collapsed, meaning the 41,000 gigawatt hour target is now closer to 27 per cent.
Labor Leader Bill Shorten said the opposition had made it clear it was open to discussing the target but it had established "no-go zones".
"The government say they want a real 20 per cent, I call it a fraud 20 per cent, a fake 20 per cent. The truth of the matter is that renewable energy is part of our energy mix," he said.
"We've seen thousands of jobs created...and we've seen billions of dollars of investment. The real damage that this government's doing in renewable energy cannot be overstated."