More than 50 companies are calling for a rapid rollout of clean energy technologies to build a prosperous zero-emissions Australia. In fact, they are already getting on with the job.
Supporters include clean tech developers, and companies that are already assembling or manufacturing wind turbines, lithium-ion batteries, solar panels, thermal storage, electric buses and commercial vehicles onshore in Australia.
From household names like Toshiba and Schneider Electric, to smaller businesses looking to scale like Fonz, Allegro and Reclaim Energy, these companies are putting their collective weight behind the effort to cut Australia’s emissions fast, and to take advantage of the new markets this creates.
This group has coalesced behind recommendations from think tank, Beyond Zero Emissions’ latest report, Deploy, that demonstrates an 81% emissions reduction by 2030 is possible using technology that we are already familiar with. Six key technologies will do the heavy lifting, but we need to speed up how quickly we are rolling them out.
Recently, 26 of the 51 companies who signed up to this initiative were presented by Beyond Zero Emissions at COP27.
For example, solar panels will require a relatively modest doubling of the current rollout rate, but for others we will be accelerating from almost a standing start. To electrify our transport systems, electric vehicles will need to be rolled out 14 times faster than they are today - Sweden has done this - accelerating its EV rollout by 17 times over six years to 2021 and we can too.
“This challenge is an enormous opportunity for Australian households and businesses.” said BZE CEO, Heidi Lee.
“Overseas examples have shown us that ramping up deployment rates to these levels is entirely possible, through aligning government and finance behind businesses that are set up to scale and deliver.
“Right now, cost of living pressures make it more important than ever that we prepare our homes and businesses to be powered by affordable and reliable renewable power.
“We can set ourselves up now to avoid future price shocks and buy Australian Made - supporting Australian workers and communities at a time they need this most.
“Integrating energy and process automation empowers manufacturers to drive sustainability across the world’s most energy intensive sites while software connects assets across the full lifecycle, resulting in one, real-time view.
In industry, automation and digital tools optimise the processes, productivity, performance, and energy usage that goes into delivering machinery, semiconductor chips, or even a humble milk carton. In cities, buildings, and infrastructure, IoT-enabled management systems can significantly reduce energy use and waste in real time. Importantly, the best vector for energy efficiency and decarbonisation is electrification, which is also the easiest path to quick and effective outcomes,” said Gareth O’Reilly, Pacific Zone President, Schneider Electric,.
“We have been making heat pumps in Australia for the past 18 years, and we need to get a heat pump into every home to support Australian families to reduce bills” said Chris Taylor, Managing Director of Reclaim Energy who won the prestigious Future Energy Industry Leader Award at the Victorian Premier’s Sustainability Awards, 2022.
“Custom Denning is investing in the future of mobility with the development of brand-new electric buses that are designed, manufactured, and assembled in Australia. We see significant opportunities in the clean energy sector and we will continue to innovate to drive the growth of zero-emission transportation. A rapid rollout will mean we can realise the opportunities sooner and bring emissions down faster.” said Scott Dunn, Managing Director of electric bus manufacturer, Custom Denning.
Companies involved:
3ME Technology
5B
Acacia Energy
Allegro Energy
Alpha HPA
Ampcontrol
Aptera Motors
Batt Mobile Equipment
Beyond Ev
Brighte
BuildFit
Canadian Solar
Capricorn Power
Carloop
Coolsheet
Custom Denning
Diffuse Energy
Earthworker Cooperative
Electromotiv
eleXsys Energy
Energy Estate
Energy Renaissance
EnergyLab
Enphase Energy
EnviroFlex Insulation
Everty
EVSE Australia
FONZ
Fronius
FTC Solar
Hysata
Jet Charge
Kardinia Energy
MGA Thermal
Newcastle Offshore Wind
Pilbara Solar
Power Ledger
REC
Reclaim Energy
RMS
Schneider Electric
SEA Electric
Seeley International
Stiebel Eltron
SunPower
SwitchDin
The GoodCar Company
Tilt Renewables
Tindo Solar
Toshiba
Vestas
