To avoid becoming a fossil economy, Australia will need to take advantage of the global shift to clean energy, as well as diversifying our export industries.
The world is shifting away from fossil fuels – and this includes key importers of Australia’s coal and gas.
Australian government policies ignore this, leaving us dependent on continued fossil fuel exports, at risk of:
- stranded investments
- dropping export revenue, and
- a growing current account deficit.
The Beyond Zero Emissions Fossil Economy Report investigates the expected revenue from Australia’s emissions-intensive exports, comparing Australian Government projections with projections from the International Energy Agency.
These projections include the business-as-usual New Policies Scenario, and the climate change mitigation 450 ppm Scenario. This indicates a potential shortfall in export revenue growing to AU$100 billion annually by 2030.
Australia is at risk of its economy being left behind, our prosperity being a relic of the past – fossilised – as the rest of the world moves to a cleaner future.
Australia will need to decouple from emissions-intensive exports to ensure a stable and prosperous economy in the future.
First published Nov 2014