Australian Energy Council (AEC) chief executive Sarah McNamara said the figure represents an ambitious and realistic interim target to get Australia to net zero emissions by 2050.
“2030 is only eight years away. Decarbonising the economy is the twenty-first century’s great challenge, but it won’t happen instantly. We think 2035, half-way to 2050, represents a sensible and realistic timeframe for a 55% economy-wide reduction,” she said.
“No sector has done more to reduce its emissions than the electricity sector, and we’ll continue to do so because it is the right thing to do for business, the economy and the environment.
“We are confident the economy can meet this 2035 target and we are keen to help other sectors to engage in the energy transition, but the time to act is now.”
The AEC is also calling for more focus on coordinated planning for an orderly exit from coal and maintaining Australia’s energy security.
“Australians want action on climate change as well as affordable, reliable energy. An interim target is an important signal of the need to reduce carbon emissions across the economy,” McNamara said.
“The electricity sector’s emissions will reduce by 55% from 2005 levels by 2030, according to government forecasts.
“Electricity can make a significant contribution to displacing much of Australia’s high carbon natural gas and liquid fuels.
“Outside electricity, most sectors are yet to begin their journey to net zero. A 2035 target provides a realistic opportunity for transport, agriculture and stationary energy (buildings and factories) to leverage existing low carbon technologies and follow electricity’s performance.”
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.