The West Australian government has announced a 75 per cent Renewable Energy Target (RET) by 2030/31 for the state’s main energy grid – the South West Interconnected System (SWIS).
The target is part of the government’s Plan for Affordable Energy which was developed in response to industry feedback from the government's Productivity Roundtable.
The plan tackles the growing cost pressures facing Western Australia from ageing coal-fired power stations and changing energy markets.
It also responds to calls from an alliance of industry, investors, unions, and advocacy bodies for a strong Renewable Energy Target as a signal of the State's intent.
Investor groups have indicated a target will help mobilise private sector investment in the projects needed to unlock new sources of affordable energy.
The plan is centred on delivering more renewable energy, backed by battery storage and flexible WA gas, to lower energy costs, strengthen the State's competitiveness, and support the industries and jobs of the future.
A key initiative is the $150 million Made in WA Energy Affordability Investment Program, which is open for applications from today and will provide low-interest loans of up to $15 million to help manufacturers install solar and battery systems and upgrade equipment to take advantage of cheaper energy.
WA Department of Energy and Economic Diversification modelling undertaken by Boston Consulting Group demonstrates that without the initiatives outlined, energy prices paid by industry could increase by 89 per cent by 2032.
WA Premier Roger Cook said the government is already delivering WA's energy transition, having increased renewables from 14 per cent of the State's energy mix in 2017 to 40 per cent in 2025, invested $2.5 billion in Clean Energy Link transmission infrastructure, and delivered more than 1,400 megawatts of grid-scale battery storage.
As WA progresses the retirement of State-owned coal-fired power generation by 2030, the plan will help avoid the increasing costs associated with operating ageing coal assets while ensuring households and businesses continue to have access to affordable and reliable power.
"By delivering more renewable energy backed by battery storage and flexible WA gas, we're putting downward pressure on power prices," Cook said.
Climate Energy Finance (CEF) director, Tim Buckley, said this is a strong, historic move forward for Western Australia and a meaningful signal to investors and industry.
"If achieved, all coal generation will be replaced by renewables by 2030/31, and we will see a material decline in gas generation, critical progress in line with climate science," he said.
Buckley said the government also needs to leverage the power of WA’s mining industry to work towards a renewables strategy for the Pilbara focused on electrification and decarbonisation.
"It is critical that our mining industry now build bilateral trade agreements, for example on green iron, to leverage the clean energy resources supply chains of our key north Asian partners as they rapidly decarbonise," he said.
"The new RET is a welcome advance for the South-West Interconnected System. This must now be matched by similarly ambitious accelerated action towards a renewable energy future in the Pilbara."