Renewable energy sector industry body CEC’s second-quarter report shows that the first half of 2024 has overtaken the entirety of 2023 in terms of generation projects reaching financial commitment, with 1.6 GW added, compared to 1.3 GW last year.
The CEC said 161 MW of solar projects reached financial commitment over the period, as well as four hybrid projects totaling 193 MW.
By state in the second quarter, Victoria and New South Wales shared the most solar projects either in financial commitment or under construction, at 14 and 12, respectively. Total investment in the New South Wales projects was AUD 2.5 billion ($1.6 billion) and AUD 1.4 billion in Victoria.
The total generation project capacity across all states is 5,516 MW, with New South Wales contributing the most at 2,241 MW, followed by Queensland with 1,248 MW from eight projects, and Victoria with 1,137 MW.
CEC Chief Executive Kane Thornton said strong investment in new renewable energy generation is critical to driving down power prices and ensuring energy security for Australia.
“With governments, regulators and industry working to overcome the barriers to new investment we remain confident that this will deliver the certainty necessary for further uptick in new investment in the near future,” Thornton said. “It is pleasing to see investment in large-scale generation continuing to move in the right direction, but we are not yet at the levels we need to see.”
The report said an acceleration in financial commitments for generation projects will be required in the second half of the 2024 calendar year in order to achieve an annual run rate of 6 GW to 7 GW per year of financial commitments for large-scale generation projects.
The rate is the same required to set Australia on the path to the federal government’s target of 82% renewable energy generation by the end of 2030.
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