Clean Energy Future

Assistance for industry

The Government has carefully designed a number of measures to support jobs and competitiveness as we move to a clean energy future. All of these measures have been designed to ensure that Australia continues to experience strong jobs growth while at the same time providing incentives to cut pollution.

Questions Answered

Q. How can builders benefit from gaining the knowledge and skills they need to construct homes that are more energy efficient?

The demand for houses that are energy efficient is on the rise as Australian homeowners begin to realise the benefits. Equipping builders with the skills they need to produce cutting-edge constructions that lead the way in energy efficiency will help their businesses thrive as this steadily growing market continues to expand.

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Q. Want to know more about the Carbon Farming Initiative?

Watch these short videos CFI Overview, Capturing piggery methane, Capturing landfill gas and Environmental plantings.

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The Jobs and Competitiveness Program

The Jobs and Competitiveness Program supports local jobs and production, and encourages industry to invest in cleaner technologies.

The ongoing program is providing $11.3 billion of assistance over the first five years of the carbon pricing mechanism, targeted at companies that produce a lot of carbon pollution but are constrained in their capacity to pass through costs in global markets. Assistance is being provided to around 50 of these ‘emissions-intensive trade-exposed’ industrial activities, such as steel, aluminium, cement and zinc manufacturing. Businesses producing over 80 per cent of the manufacturing sector’s emissions are expected to be eligible for assistance under this program.

The most emissions-intensive trade-exposed activities receive assistance to cover 94.5 per cent of industry average carbon costs in the first year of the carbon price, with less emissions-intensive trade-exposed activities to receive assistance to cover 66 per cent of industry average carbon costs. Assistance will be reduced by 1.3 per cent each year to encourage industry to cut pollution.

Regular reviews ensure that the Jobs and Competitiveness Program remains in step with international action on climate change and continues to support jobs and competitiveness.

Additional measures for manufacturing

The Government is delivering a $1.2 billion Clean Technology Program, over and above the Jobs and Competitiveness Program, to help directly improve energy efficiency in manufacturing industries and support research and development in low pollution technologies.

The Clean Technology Program provides support for manufacturers through the following three streams:

$800 million Clean Technology Investment Program providing grants to manufacturers to support investments in energy-efficient capital equipment and low-pollution technologies, processes and products.
$200 million Clean Technology Food and Foundries Investment Program providing businesses in the food processing, metal forging and foundry industries with grants for similar energy efficiency improvements ($150 million for food processors, $50 million for metal forging and foundries).
$200 million Clean Technology Innovation Program supporting business investment in research and development in the areas of renewable energy, low pollution technology and energy efficiency.

In the 2013-14 Budget, The Government has decided to bring forward $160 million of funding allocated to the Clean Technology Program into 2014-15, from 2015-16 and 2016-17.Industry will be able to access support for clean technology investment and research and development projects earlier than would have otherwise been the case.

Support for the steel industry

The $300 million Steel Transformation Plan supports and assists the industry transition to a clean energy future, and recognises the pressures currently facing this important industry. This package comes in addition to the assistance for businesses within emissions-intensive trade-exposed industries under the Jobs and Competitiveness Program.

The Steel Transformation Plan is complemented by a small increase in free permit allocation for the steel industry from 2016-17 onwards.

Support for the coal sector

The $983 million Coal Sector Jobs Package provides transitional assistance to help the coal industry to implement carbon abatement technologies for the mines that produce the most carbon pollution. The amount of carbon pollution produced by coal mines varies greatly, so the fairest way to deliver assistance is to target assistance at those mines that are most impacted by the introduction of the carbon price. The Government’s Coal Sector Jobs Package assists the operators of these mines to support jobs and local communities, some of which rely heavily on coal mining employment.

The Coal Mining Abatement Technology Support Package assists coal mines in developing and deploying new technologies to reduce their carbon pollution. The long term viability of the coal mining sector depends on innovation and the deployment of new technologies and the Coal Abatement Technology Support Package provides additional support to the advances that will ensure coal mining will play a valuable part in our clean energy future.

For more information about assistance for industry, see:

Supporting jobs and industry
Jobs are being supported by extensive assistance to businesses affected by a carbon price. A Jobs and Competitiveness Program is providing $11.3 billion of assistance over the first five years of the carbon pricing mechanism to safeguard jobs in industries which face international competition and produce a lot of pollution.

Support for the Australian steel industry
The Government is providing assistance to help the steel industry transition to a clean energy future, recognising that the steel industry has an important role to play in the prosperity of regional and metropolitan Australia providing a significant source of employment.

Forest activities
Forest industries are benefitting from the Government’s plan for a clean energy future. The forestry industry does not have to pay for emissions from fertiliser, timber harvesting, or off-road vehicles and machinery. Over time, carbon pricing will increase the value of wood products. Products that compete with timber, such as cement, steel and fossil fuels, are be covered by the carbon price.

Emissions from landfill facilities
Local governments and other operators may be liable to pay a carbon price for their methane emissions from landfill. Landfill operators have incentives to reduce their emissions by capturing methane, which can be used to generate electricity. Emissions can also be reduced by diverting waste or other treatments.

Carbon Pricing Mechanism: Who is liable?
Most companies operating large emitting facilities are liable—those which generate over 25,000 tonnes of CO₂-e emissions each year. Most of these companies directly emit greenhouse gases, such as power stations, mines and heavy industry. Some will be public authorities responsible for emissions from landfills.

Synthetic greenhouse gases
Placing a price tag on synthetic greenhouse gases encourages both industry and consumers to consider products using alternative gases, improve containment and increase the incentive for recycling.

In the 2013-14 Budget, the Government announced that it will implement a destruction incentives program for waste Synthetic Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depleting Substances by providing support to industry funded and operated destruction incentives programs.