Renewables account for nearly 40% of Australia’s electricity: report

The country added 5.9 GW of renewable energy capacity in 2023.

Renewable energy comprises 39.4% of Australia’s total electricity in 2023, with 5.9 gigawatts (GW) of green energy projects added to its generation capacity, according to the Clean Energy Council (CEC).

“We’ve reached a major milestone following 12 months of profound change as industry and governments at all levels continue to work together with a renewed focus on a timely transformation of our energy system,” CEC Chief Executive Kane Thornton said.

“This is a major increase from 2017, when the share of Australia’s total renewable generation was just 17%,” he added.

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CEC added that the rooftop solar sector continues its growth, accounting for 3.1 GW of the new capacity. Nearly 338,000 households and businesses have installed the technology in Australia.

The sector comprised 28.5% of all renewable generation last year.

Meanwhile, 27 battery projects were under construction in 2023, up from 19 in 2002, with investments reaching around $3.2m (A$4.9b), from around $1.3m (A$1.9b) in 2022.

The council added that there were no new financial commitments to utility-scale wind projects in 2023, but there were seven new utility-scale solar projects with a total capacity of 921 megawatts, down from 10 projects of 1.5 GW in 2022.

$1 = A$1.51