Make it Here: Building Australia's Clean Industrial Future

The global energy transition is gathering momentum. The global forecast for cleantech demand growth is substantial and the world will need to massively scale up clean energy supply over the next 10-15 years.

Australia ranks highly for its raw material reserves. In the short-to-medium term there are opportunities for Australia to grow production of critical commodities.

As demand for cleantech and the necessary materials skyrockets, Australia has a huge opportunity to move down the value chain (from the “dig and ship” where mining dominates to “mine and make”) for significant economic reward.

Renewable Energy Industrial Precincts (REIPs) are an efficient way to revitalise Australia’s industrial centres with low-cost renewable energy, to power the industries of the future. Ideally, REIPs should be located in existing industrial centres, to benefit from skilled workforces, ports and roads, and from rail and energy infrastructure. Also, the rollout of renewables must consider nature and communities.

For Australia to meet emission reduction targets, significant new units of each clean technology will need to be deployed onshore.

Energy security and low-cost energy is the cornerstone of Australia’s ability to bring down emissions and become a renewable energy and export powerhouse. Concentrated global cleantech supply chains and projected materials shortages represent a risk to sovereign security, but can become an opportunity for Australia if it invests in cleantech supply chains, particularly in manufacturing, right now.