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Development finance facilities: Prospects for APAC
Sponsors and project developers across the renewables and energy transition space are currently facing a challenging macroeconomic environment.
Australia | 出版物 | 八月 2019
Last month, the Climate Change Authority (Authority) released a consultation paper (available here) to support its work in updating its advice to the Australian Government on climate change policies to meet Australia’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction commitments under the Paris Agreement. The Authority is an independent statutory agency, which was established in 2012 to advise the Government on climate change policy.
The consultation paper notes that the Authority’s previous advice has been provided in various reports over recent years, including notably its report on the policy toolkit to meet the Paris Agreement emissions reduction target of 2016 (see our legal update on that report here).
The Authority is aiming to provide its updated advice by the end of 2019, with a view to positioning Australia to “not only meet its 2030 emissions target, but also to meet targets with enhanced ambition that put Australia clearly and firmly on the path to net zero emissions.”
There are five key issues that the consultation paper seeks to address:
Submissions from interested organisations and individuals can be made until 23 August 2019.
The overarching goals under the Paris Agreement are to:
The Australian Government’s current medium-term commitment under the Paris Agreement is to reduce our national GHG emissions by between 26 to 28 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030 (2030 Target). Australia’s emissions are currently projected to be 563 Mt CO2-e in 2030 (7 per cent below 2005 levels), suggesting that Australia is currently not on track to meet its 2030 Target.1
In addition, Australia, along with all other signatories to the Paris Agreement, is expected to adopt a more ambitious GHG emissions reduction target under the Paris Agreement process in 2020. However, according to the consultation paper, the Authority “will not be making recommendations about the level of the Government’s 2030 emissions reduction target” in 2019.
Relevantly, in its 2015 Final Report on Australia’s Future Emissions Reduction Targets (available here), the Authority recommended an emissions reduction target of 40-60 per cent below 2000 levels by 2030, or 45 to 65 per cent below 2005 levels.
In light of the 2020 deadline for Australia to submit its revised emissions reduction targets under the Paris Agreement, this review by the Authority comes at a critical time for the Australian Government in terms of assessing the effectiveness of its existing suite of emissions reductions policies. Current Australian Government policy primarily consists of the Carbon Farming Initiative and Emissions Reduction Fund (with additional funding through the Climate Solutions Fund), the Safeguard Mechanism and the Renewable Energy Target (see our previous update here).
Relevantly, a stocktake report published by the Authority in March 2019 (available here), indicated that Australia’s existing suite of emissions reduction policies alone will not be sufficient to ensure that the 2030 Target is met.
According to the consultation paper, key advice previously given by the Authority in relation to Australia’s climate change policy position includes:
However, a number of these recommendations have not been implemented by Government and do not form part of the current Government’s policy position on climate change.
The consultation paper notes that since the Authority’s previous advice on Australia’s climate policy position was issued, there have been:
The development of the Authority’s updated advice will also be informed by three stocktake reports recently released by the Authority (available here). The key findings of these reports are as follows:
If you wish to discuss any aspect of the Authority’s consultation paper, including making a submission, or Australia’s existing climate change policies, please contact a member of our team.
Australia’s emissions projections 2018, Department of the Environment and Energy, Canberra
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Sponsors and project developers across the renewables and energy transition space are currently facing a challenging macroeconomic environment.
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