Australia and New Zealand have agreed to new measures to help unlock the golden economic opportunities of the net zero transformation and streamline and modernise regulation.
This is all about cheaper and cleaner energy for households and businesses, and boosting trade, investment, and productivity on both sides of the Tasman through clear and constructive climate action.
Today we were hosted by New Zealand Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis, and Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Simon Watts, for the third Australia‑New Zealand Climate and Finance Dialogue in Auckland.
Yesterday, Minister Bowen was welcomed by New Zealand solar and battery industry participants interested in learning more about Australia's successful Cheaper Home Batteries Program.
A big part of our discussion was about streamlining and modernising regulatory standards to strengthen our economies, including as part of the net zero transformation.
We're bolstering the trade in low‑emission goods, supporting the solar and battery industries in both countries, and improving the roll out of smart EV battery chargers and vehicle‑to‑grid standards.
We agreed to collaborate in support of the Pacific's ambition to transition to renewable energy, promote sustainable finance, and strengthen sustainable fuel supply chains to deliver energy security in our region.
Managing an orderly transition to net zero is essential to the security, stability, prosperity, and economic development in the Pacific.
In a joint statement released today, we agreed to:
- Coordinate economic reform agendas across the Tasman - including through Treasurer Chalmers inviting Minister for Finance Willis to attend a meeting of the Council on Federal Financial Relations (CFFR).
- Co‑invest in upgrades to the joint Equipment Energy Efficiency (E3) Program to reduce costs for industry and help unlock cheaper, cleaner household products.
- Further align regulatory settings for consumer energy technologies, including by developing a joint approach on requiring electric vehicle (EV) chargers to have smart functionality and align vehicle to grid (V2G) standards.
- Support Pacific ambitions to accelerate renewable energy, including by collaborating to support a project under the Australia‑Pacific Partnership for Energy Transition.
- Work on aligning and coordinating consumer product safety standards to reduce barriers to trans‑Tasman trade.
- Work on closer alignment as we progress the development of both countries' payment systems, financial licensing, and digital assets reforms.
- Continue to align sustainable finance taxonomies including by expanding New Zealand's taxonomy to the energy and construction sectors.
- Progress the trans‑Tasman Sustainable Aviation Fuel supply chain, building off Australia's Cleaner Fuels Program.
- Establish a working group of government and industry to share information and collaborate on solutions to help ensure insurance remains accessible.
The full joint statement is available on the Treasury ministers website.
