The Albanese Labor Government is backing Australian industry with some of the most competitive decarbonisation finance in the world.
Reducing energy costs and carbon emissions at large industrial facilities is vital to Australia's productivity, competitiveness and jobs.
Turning that challenge into opportunity, including for Australian manufacturers of clean energy technology and infrastructure is at the heart of the Albanese Government's Future Made in Australia plan.
The $5 billion Net Zero Fund, announced last year as part of the Industry Sector Plan, is the centrepiece of the Albanese Government's approach to driving decarbonisation, unlocking new manufacturing investment and improving energy affordability in hard-to-abate sectors of the Australian economy.
Today the Government announces the design of the new Net Zero Fund within the National Reconstruction Fund (NRF).
The Net Zero Fund will offer highly concessional finance that helps firms decarbonise the most energy-intensive parts of their operations, as well as support investment in the scale-up of domestic manufacturing of low emissions technologies.
Specifically, the new sub-fund of the NRF will target a lower rate of return on its investment (a target amounting to the five-year Australian government bond rate minus 1 per cent).
That means the Fund can take on more risk than commercial finance and help Australian industry adopt the technologies that cut industrial emissions, and crowd in private capital.
This globally competitive finance delivers confidence to investors, manufacturers, heavy industry, Australian workers and communities that Australia is open for business - and committed to capturing the opportunities of the global energy transformation.
The Fund will be operational by mid 2026.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science Tim Ayres:
"Backing Australian heavy industry and manufacturing to reduce its emissions and lower energy costs is a big national challenge that demands leadership, planning and an appetite for risk.
"The Albanese Labor Government is backing Australian investors, manufacturing firms, workers and innovators in our national mission to secure low emissions technologies and lower energy costs for Australia's biggest manufacturers and producers.
"Globally competitive financing from the NRF's Net Zero Fund will make sure public investment in decarbonisation crowds in billions of dollars in private capital and drives down industrial energy costs and emissions, while supporting new manufacturing jobs in the regions.
"The National Reconstruction Fund is delivering important investments for Australia's economic resilience - from last week's $75 million investment in Alpha HPA in Gladstone to this week's $20 million investment in Diraq's quantum technology, this government is backing Aussie ingenuity."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen:
"This is about getting energy costs down for Australian industry. By lowering the cost of finance for clean energy upgrades, the Net Zero Fund helps big energy users invest sooner, use energy more efficiently and reduce the risks of volatile fossil fuel prices.
"If we want a Future Made in Australia, we must help our hardest-to-abate industries modernise and stay globally competitive. This Fund helps back the next wave of clean industrial investment, and it backs Australian workers and regional communities that rely on these industries."
"While the Liberals and Nationals argue about slogans, we are delivering practical support that helps manufacturers invest with confidence. Cheaper finance means more projects can stack up, more Australian supply chains can grow, and more industrial emissions can come down."
