Western Australia announces $1b clean energy fund to expand renewable power network

Major projects include CEL – East and North to upgrade transmission networks.

The Western Australian Cook Labor Government will establish a $1.003b (AU$1.4b) clean energy fund to expand renewable energy infrastructure and support decarbonisation across the state.

The fund, to be detailed in the 2026–27 State Budget, will finance major transmission projects aimed at improving access to clean, affordable and reliable electricity in the South West and regional WA.

A key project is Clean Energy Link (CEL) – East, which will connect new wind and solar developments east of Collie to the South West Interconnected System. Once complete, it is expected to power around 1 million homes.

This follows the ongoing construction of CEL – North, which will strengthen transmission between Malaga and Three Springs and unlock renewable energy from the Mid West through upgraded lines, substations and transformers.

Together, CEL – North and CEL – East will deliver around 3 gigawatts of renewable energy and create about 800 jobs during construction.

The government will declare both projects priority developments under the State Development Act 2025 to streamline approvals and speed up delivery. CEL – Kwinana will also be declared a priority project to support 900MW of new demand in the Western Trade Coast.

CEL – North is due for completion in late 2027, whilst CEL – East is expected online by the end of 2029.

An additional $7m will be provided to Horizon Power to support renewable energy upgrades in regional areas including the West Kimberley, Coral Bay, Hopetoun, Denham, and the Pilbara.