Australia’s 1H large-scale renewable approvals rise

Australia's Clean Energy Regulator (CER) approved 24pc more large-scale renewable energy capacity in this year's first half compared with a year earlier, while large-scale generation certificates (LGCs) held in the local registry also increased.

The CER approved 1,175MW under the Large-scale Renewable Energy Target (LRET) scheme over January-June, up from 949MW in the same period of 2023 and the highest for a first half since 2020 when 2,146MW was accredited, CER data show.

Total approved capacity in 2023 reached 2,206MW, slightly above 2022 but almost half of the record highs of 4,110MW in 2019 and 4,070MW in 2020.

LRET-accredited plants can issue LGCs and sell them to liable entities under Australia's Renewable Energy Target, mainly electricity retailers that need to surrender the certificates to the CER on an annual basis. LGCs can also be sold to companies and individuals looking to support their emissions reduction claims.

Total LGCs in the local renewable energy certificate registry reached 28.45mn at the end of June this year, or the equivalent of 28.45TWh, with each certificate representing 1MWh of renewable power. This is up from 24.66TWh in the same period of 2023, according to CER data.

Accounts held by major utilities including Origin Energy, Alinta Energy, AGL and EnergyAustralia were among the largest LGC holders at the end of the first half of the year (see table).

Total operational accredited capacity under the LRET reached 20,971MW in June. The CER also reported 7,853MW of committed capacity from large-scale renewable projects that received all development approvals and reached a final investment decision by the end of the first half. There was also 4,391MW of "probable" projects, or those that have announced power purchase agreements with strong counterparties or provided other evidence of funding.

By Juan Weik