Analysis Confirms Renewables as Australia's Path

Dept of Industry, Science and Resources

Joint media release with Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen.

New independent analysis released today confirms that the Albanese Labor Government's renewable energy plan for cheaper, cleaner energy is the right plan for Australian businesses and homes.

The 2024-25 GenCost report, prepared by independent expert bodies CSIRO and the Australian Energy Market Operator, compares the cost to build and operate new coal, gas, solar, onshore wind, offshore wind, batteries and nuclear generators.

It shows that renewable energy, even when accounting for the costs of firming and storage, continues to be the lowest-cost new-build technologies, underscored further by the falling cost of batteries.

Australia is already a solar nation - with the highest rate of rooftop solar anywhere in the world. Now, barely a month in, the Albanese Labor Government's Cheaper Homer Batteries program is seeing over 15,000 households add storage to their homes as more Australians embrace renewable energy.

The Australian people back independent science in this country. That's why they thoroughly rejected the Coalition's discredited, risky, and expensive nuclear energy scheme at the recent election.

New data from Canada's Darlington project - the first commercial-scale western cost benchmark - demonstrates that small nuclear modular reactors remain the most expensive energy option, while the Coalition continues to back nuclear power.

Graph showing Gencost Levelised Cost 2030 - $ per MWh

For the first time the report quantifies the first premium for building large-scale nuclear in Australia, and finds that to be 120%.

While GenCost confirms Australian construction costs and global supply chain constraints for some technologies have continued to put pressure on costs, the Albanese Labor Government's plan to build an affordable and efficient energy grid with renewable energy at its center remains the lowest cost option for Australia.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science Tim Ayres:

"Reliable, abundant clean renewable energy - backed by gas - is paramount to Australian industry getting the affordable energy they need and deserve.

"It is key to protecting traditional heavy manufacturing industries, as well as attracting new industries like AI and data centres.

"A flexible, reliable, cost-effective and expanded energy grid is critical to delivering a Future Made in Australia: our plan for good blue-collar and engineering jobs in our regions and outer suburbs."

Quotes attributable to Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen:

"Australia has the best wind and sun to power our future and we're harnessing it to secure the better, fairer energy system our nation deserves.

"The latest GenCost confirms what our energy experts have been saying for a long time: the most affordable path to deliver reliable energy in future is with new renewable generation and storage, firmed by gas and pumped hydro.

"This is a test for the new Coalition - will they listen to the experts and embrace the cheapest form of energy or continue their anti-renewable expensive nuclear fixation?"

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