AGL Energy (AGL) welcomes the opportunity to comment on Australian Government’s Electricity and Energy Sector Plan discussion paper. AGL is supportive of the Australian Government taking a whole-of-economy approach to developing Australia’s Net Zero Plan, which will guide how Australia can transform our economy to net zero by 2050.

The individual sectoral plans that cover all the major components of Australia’s economy can ensure that the Net Zero Plan and the development of strong 2035 targets are informed of all of opportunities, challenges, and constraints faced by Australia in meeting its net zero ambitions. There are important interactions between each of the sector plans, with the Electricity and Energy Sector Plan playing a key enabling role for all the other sector plans.

Decarbonising the electricity and energy sector will be central to the Australia’s Net Zero Plan. This will require rapidly increasing the share of renewable energy sources, uptake of electrification and consumer energy resources to reduce the dependence on fossil fuels. This will need to be supported by significant investments in grid infrastructure, storage solutions, and demand response mechanisms to ensure reliability and security of supply. Most importantly, achieving the necessary rate and scale of transition will need a coordinated approach among federal, state, and local governments, market bodies, industry, and consumers.

Read the full submission here.