Renewable Energy Superpower

The transition to a low-carbon world will bring major changes to the energy system, international trade and the distribution of energy-intensive production across the world. The International Energy Agency forecasts the new era will be fuelled by $US2.5 trillion of annual investment in clean energy.

Beyond Zero Emissions explores Australia’s unique advantage in our Renewable Energy Superpower report (2015), which estimates that Australia’s potential to generate solar and wind energy is more than 5000 exajoules. That’s 75% greater than the country’s combined reserves of coal, gas, oil and uranium, and enough to power the world for ten years.

This puts Australia in a prime position to create jobs and attract investment.

The renewable energy era will bring about three phases of economic opportunity:

1. the transition to renewable energy
2. the migration of energy-intensive industries like aluminium to countries with abundant and cheap renewable energy
3. the development of export markets in zero carbon fuels such as renewable electricity and hydrogen.