Library | ESG issues
Energy Solutions & Decarbonisation
Energy solutions and decarbonisation refer to strategies and technologies that reduce carbon emissions while ensuring reliable and sustainable energy supply. This includes renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and hydropower, energy efficiency measures, electrification, carbon capture, and clean energy innovations. Decarbonisation is essential for mitigating climate change, enhancing energy security, and transitioning industries toward low-carbon operations.
Refine
548 results
REFINE
SHOW: 16
Economic and social survey of Asia and the Pacific 2026: Socioeconomic prosperity amid the transition to an environmentally sustainable economy
Asia-Pacific developing economies grew 4.6% in 2025, with growth projected to slow to 4.0% in 2026. This report outlines a three-step framework to align energy transitions with socioeconomic prosperity, leveraging fiscal policy, political economy insights, and behavioural science nudges to ensure long-term regional stability.
India insights: Sustainable debt investor survey 2026
This survey of 60 investors highlights the evolution of India's sustainable debt market, which surpassed USD60bn in issuances by late 2025. It identifies a shift towards climate opportunities, the necessity of a national taxonomy, and recommendations for regulators to implement minimum climate allocation thresholds to mobilise domestic capital.
Unlocking the missing middle: commercial and industrial distributed energy resources in Australia
This report examines the 'missing middle' segment of Australia’s commercial and industrial energy sector. It identifies critical regulatory, connection, and financial barriers hindering distributed energy resource deployment. Key recommendations include standardising connection processes, reforming network tariffs, and establishing a credible certificate price signal to incentivise investment.
Warp speed: Accelerating renewable energy infrastructure deployment
This report outlines a strategy for accelerating Australia’s renewable energy infrastructure. It identifies critical bottlenecks in the workforce, planning approvals, capital allocation, and supply chains. Proposing a ‘warp speed’ mandate, the document provides 24 recommendations to achieve the rapid generation, transmission, and storage expansion required for 2035 targets.
Homework in climate economics: Household production, environmental preferences, and climate policy
This research analyses household energy use and climate policy, identifying residential solar as a cornerstone for cost-effective abatement. It finds that environmental preferences significantly lower baseline emissions, while income-targeted subsidies provide minimal fiscal savings. The study emphasises the vital complementarity between solar and electricity-intensive equipment like electric vehicles.
Electrification across the steel value chain
This report examines electrification as a critical pathway for decarbonising the steel industry. It evaluates technologies for process heat, iron ore reduction and downstream operations. Highlighting energy security and flexibility benefits, the analysis advocates for policy support and investment to transition from fossil fuels to clean electricity.
Crude awakening: How Australia ranks on fuel security
Australia is highly vulnerable to global oil shocks as the world's largest seaborne diesel importer. This report details how the 2026 energy crisis cost motorists $5 billion. It advocates for rapid electrification of transport and mining to replace volatile imported fuels with secure, domestic renewable energy.
Castles & cars: Savings in the suburbs through electrifying everything technical study
This report examines the potential for Australian households to achieve significant financial savings through total electrification. It highlights that by 2030, average families could save up to $6,000 annually. The analysis stresses the importance of rapid technology adoption and policy intervention to eliminate domestic fossil fuel emissions.
Electrify 2515 community pilot: Lessons learnt report no. 1: August 2024 – November 2024
This report details the initial phase of the Electrify 2515 Community Pilot, highlighting strong recruitment driven by community engagement. Key findings include the need for simplified terminology, such as "smart energy devices," and the necessity for specialised installer training to navigate complex retrofitting challenges and variable market pricing.
Unlocking a virtuous cycle: Overcoming barriers to AI in Australian energy systems
This report examines barriers to AI adoption in Australia's energy transition. Despite AI's potential to unlock grid capacity and reduce costs, adoption is hindered by risk aversion, capital expenditure biases, and siloed data. It recommends joint government-industry action, including regulatory reform and innovation funding, to scale transformative AI solutions.
Powering Australia's future
This report proposes establishing 'Sovereign Power', a Commonwealth entity to build firmed renewable generation for Australia's heavy industry. By leveraging lower public borrowing costs, it could provide electricity at $66/MWh, 44 percent below market rates, securing sovereign capability and supporting the 'Future Made in Australia' framework.
A productivity agenda for Australia
This submission by the Grattan Institute outlines a productivity agenda for Australia focused on tax reform, talent maximisation, housing supply, and the net-zero transition. It recommends curbing tax concessions, improving childcare affordability, streamlining skilled migration, and rewarding state governments for relaxing restrictive land-use planning rules to boost economic growth.
Clouded future: Managing the risks of the data centre boom
The report examines the surge in Australian data centres driven by AI and cloud computing. It warns that unmanaged growth could triple energy demand by 2030, increasing power prices and carbon pollution. Recommendations include mandatory renewable energy support, improved water efficiency, and transparent reporting to align the industry with climate goals.
Battery boom: Supercharging Australia’s renewable rollout
This report examines Australia's battery storage boom, detailing how two million household batteries by 2030 could save $4 billion annually. It analyses falling costs, state-level progress, and vehicle-to-grid technology, providing policy recommendations to integrate storage across the grid to accelerate the transition to a reliable, renewable energy system.
Submission to the Senate Select Committee on Australia's Productivity - clean energy, electrification, net zero and the environment
The Smart Energy Council provides recommendations to enhance national productivity through electrification, circular economy initiatives, and regulatory reform. Key focuses include a $7.3 billion solar resource recovery opportunity and addressing mining approval delays that risk $51 billion in GDP, advocating for streamlined environmental standards and transport decarbonisation.
Gas-fired electricity generation is a bridge, not a destination
This research report by Nexa Advisory examines gas-fired electricity as a transitional fuel in Australia. Modelling indicates that infrastructure delays could increase reliance on expensive gas, raising wholesale costs by up to $115.7 billion. It recommends accelerating transmission build-out and clarifying gas’s back-up role to protect consumers.
