Ketan Joshi’s Post

With the new Labour Government in place investors are now carefully considering what the new political consensus in the UK could mean for the energy transition. Commenting in Net Zero Investor Pollination’s Head of EMEA Patrick Suckling believes the election results could trigger significant progress on the road to net zero: “This landslide win provides the strongest possible mandate for change, where the incoming government has already made clear that one of the most transformative changes will be to end the backsliding on the UK’s journey to net zero, not least powering the nation with clean renewable energy. With over 90 per cent of global GDP committed to this journey, that is where the UK’s future lies,” he stressed. Read more: https://lnkd.in/egMpXHGv #energytransition #netzero

Good news! It seems this government's PM and Treasurer may not waste their shot by fiddling in the margins of Australia's #energy and #decarbonisation policy. The Australian Financial Review has the drop of a speech tonight in the #Hunter #NSW region and is reporting:   "The Albanese government is planning a “think big” multibillion-dollar initiative to try to compete with the United States’ $624 billion Inflation Reduction Act and similar schemes elsewhere, in a bid to drive the domestic development of clean energy technology. In a speech to be delivered in Newcastle on Friday evening, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will argue that if Australia is to become a renewable energy superpower, “the government has to be a partner in this, not just an observer”... “... Converting our natural resources into national strengths, and ensuring that, here on the doorstep of the fastest-growing region in the world in human history, we are not just on the outside looking in [but] we are engaged and involved." Climate Capital Forum has been calling for this kind of thinking for 18 months. As we note in our pre-budget submission, a visionary public policy shift is required, setting the right market signals and leveraging the national balance sheet. This would unlock and crowd-in private capital enabling large-scale investment to ensure Australia seizes the economic and employment opportunities from being a renewable energy and critical minerals superpower. We look forward to reading the details as they emerge. https://lnkd.in/gZgRR5xT

“Over 60% of Australia's now super-funded critical minerals and hydrogen projects, and the vast swathes of land needed for solar and wind to run those projects, are on land/sea where First Nations have legal rights and interests” We urgently need strategies for an inclusive renewable transition that protects cultural and natural heritage.

Immense opportunities and incentivising investment. How might the new government garner greater #NetZero get-go? A fascinating insight from Mona Dohle in Net Zero Investor earlier this week on how to power-up private sector interest in Net Zero infrastructure. Writing on the approach outlined by new Secretary for Energy and Net Zero, Ed Miliband, they flag the fierce new formula to "double onshore wind, triple solar power and quadruple offshore wind capacity. " as showing potential stability for businesses to get behind on their #NetZeroTransition. Also noting that Pollination Managing Director Patrick Suckling believes support for the new greener government could "trigger significant progress on the road to net zero". So the question remains, where would new investment best cultivate confidence for your organisations #NetZeroJourney? Do you agree that a new office for delivering Net Zero would be a benefit for businesses unlocking opportunities? Does your organisation want to slash it's #Scope3Emissions and zero-in on Net Zero? Get in-touch with the specialists at GreenBridge Associates! Let us know your thoughts below and find the full article here: https://lnkd.in/egMpXHGv #ClimateChange #ClimateResponsibility #Government #Business #NetZero2030 #Investment

The Australian Government has once again kicked the can down the road, locking First Nations out from participating in the economy. That’s Karrina Nolan talking, co-Chair of the First Nations Clean Energy Network. Karrina says there's two significant pieces missing from the Federal government's 2024 Budget. The first is certainty. Investors need certainty to invest. Financiers need certainty to lend. Project proponents need certainty to develop. Communities need certainty to consent. Well-designed government legislation, policy and frameworks can deliver the necessary certainty for clean energy projects to proceed. Legislation that recognises free prior and informed consent, the right to negotiate, land/sea tenure, water rights, cultural heritage and environmental protection would provide that certainty, if it existed. Policy that enables minimum equity requirements and significant First Nations investment in new energy developments, collaboration and participation, partnerships and investment ensuring equity among parties impacted by a project on Country would provide that certainty, if it existed. And compliance frameworks ensuring best practice First Nations-led engagement on energy projects would provide that certainty, if it existed. The second is First Nations people. First Nations participation in and benefits arising from the energy transition was unapologetically ignored in last night's Federal Budget 2024-25. We have been stripped from the equation. Focusing funding on industry subsidies and incentives and building more layers of government, the Budget falls devastatingly short in addressing the urgent and long-term energy security needs of First Nations. Simply, there is nothing in the Federal Budget for First Nations in the clean energy transition. And it's not like the government doesn't get it. Over 60% of Australia's now super-funded critical minerals and hydrogen projects, and the vast swathes of land needed for solar and wind to run those projects, are on land/sea where First Nations have legal rights and interests - and while Native Title or land rights may not apply across the whole country, cultural heritage is tenure-blind, and increasingly, investors too are demanding the certainty that genuine First Nations partnerships can bring. In order to activate investment in Australia's superpower ambition significant additional investment in First Nations capacity, consent, collaboration, co-design and co-ownership needs to be made through loan guarantees and tax incentives, funding criteria and specialist programs. Significant legislation needs to be altered to ensure First Nations consent and cultural heritage, and rights and interests are legally protected as rights holders, not stakeholders. The Australian Government knows all this, but once again has kicked the can down the road, locking First Nations out from participating in the economy. Thanks for publishing National Indigenous Times.

HOW WILL UK GREEN GROWTH PLAY OUT? With The Labour Party Party forming the new UK government following the #GeneralElection last week, those interested in #sustainability will be interested in how the promises of the manifesto translates into physical action. There already was a diversity of opinion about a #GreenAgenda, from sceptics and deniers, to evangelists and everywhere in between. Interestingly there’s less disagreement about the more political aspects of #EnergySecurity not least as a result of the invasion of Ukraine and the fallout of the situation in Palestine. The mitigation however has delivered different answers from pumping more oil from the #NorthSea, to accelerating #renewable #energy generation. Opponents of the “more oil” lobby point out that N Sea oil goes into a regional/global market, and not directly into the UK, most going to refineries on the European mainland and elsewhere. Those supporters of sustainability highlight that building the #infrastructure IN the UK mean less dependency OUTSIDE the UK. One area that has been addressed very quickly is the removal of the moratorium on #OnshoreWind development. This is the #sustainable #energy part of sweeping changes to infrastructure planning in general. The halt was placed some years ago as local opposition (AKA #NIMBY) to turbines won support in Westminster. With the last government rolling back commitments, there is a loud call going out to pull the timetable forward, back to the original dates and more. Other areas being focussed on are #solar, not least using acres and acres of commercial rooftops to create electricity locally (#LocalPowerPlan), more insulation help, reversal of the #ICE end date and accelerating #EV and other alternatives, and questions about #HS2 (which the Chancellor Rt Hon Rachel Reeves less than an hour ago stated would not be reinstated until the funding for it can be found). The new government’s commitment on appearing and demonstrating #FiscalResponsibility is underlined by the apparent drive to create growth in the green sector, to provide new jobs in country, and reduce cash going out of the country to pay for energy, thereby being able to fund new waves of investment. It’s going to be interesting to watch how this unfurls. https://lnkd.in/eDFtEi3A

We welcome the Chancellor’s plans to speed up grid connectivity and reform planning for renewable energy projects, which could reduce some of the burdens holding back private investment into the low-carbon economy, although it remains to be seen how effective these will be in practice. The size and scale of commitments made today still fall short of a sufficiently comprehensive response to the U.S Inflation Reduction Act, the EU’s Green Deal Industrial Plan, and similar initiatives in other jurisdictions. If the UK is to attract the capital needed to lead the global transition to a more sustainable future, creating jobs and economic prosperity, we must build investor confidence, address greenwashing risks, and tackle more of the UK’s underlying investment barriers. The Chancellor didn’t go far enough. https://lnkd.in/eQq4bQv5

“Investment into energy transitions and infrastructure will help mitigate potential price shocks, reduce reliance on Russian gas, and stimulate economic growth, similar to impact of the US inflation Reduction Act…We want to see decisive actions and clear commitments from the new Labour government regarding the energy transition.” Adam Macdonald, Managing Director – Centrus Read the full article in Professional Wealth Management (PWM): https://lnkd.in/gY-v8YHJ   #FinanceWithPurpose #RenewableEnergy #EnergyTransition

Incorporating First Nations into the Future Made in Australia Act, announced this week, will finally bring Australia onto a more equal footing with the United States and Canada. Both the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Canada’s response drive a significant portion of new clean energy investment into Tribal and First Nations. The IRA introduced seismic shifts to Tribal Nations’ energy development landscape through rebates, loans, guarantees and tax credits, and setting aside $720 million in grants specifically for Tribal Nations. Canada has $3 billion slated for Indigenous-led projects and various regional priorities, and the proposed $5 billion Indigenous Loan Guarantee program representing a significant opportunity toward fostering economic growth and energy sovereignty in Indigenous and First Nations communities. In Australia, while Federal government investment in First Nations clean energy has yet to reach double didgets, it does appear the investment landscape is being set. The new Net Zero Economy Authority Bill 2024 establishing the Net Zero Economy Agency mandates supporting First Nations persons “to participate in, and benefit from, Australia’s transition to a net zero emissions economy.” And the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Act 2023 mandates not only that the Board “must have regard to the desirability of encouraging and improving economic participation by historically underrepresented groups, including…First Nations Australians,” but that it also “must formulate written policies … in relation to … the impact of investments of the Corporation on First Nations Australians’. These two existing examples stand as powerful precedent for similarly ensuring First Nations participation and benefit is specifically included in the Future Made in Australia Act. As Minister Chris Bowen MP said, "We know that First Nations people did not share in ownership and equity when it came to oil and gas for example, often and on First Nations land. “We can’t make that same mistake again. And we won’t make that mistake again. "We can do much, much better." Thanks for publishing RenewEconomy!