Australia’s Technology Investment Roadmap: have your say

The Australian Government is developing a national Technology Investment Roadmap that will drive investment in low emissions technologies to strengthen our economy and support jobs and businesses. This is a key priority on the road to recovery from COVID-19.

The release of the Technology Investment Roadmap discussion paper is the next step in the Government’s ‘technology not taxes’ approach to reducing emissions.

This roadmap will prioritise Australian Government investments in new and developing technologies. Deploying the right technology when and where it is needed will allow Australian industry to capture new opportunities.

The roadmap focuses on:

  • developing technologies that will support jobs growth
  • backing new industries that will help our regional communities and local economies to prosper
  • putting Australia at the forefront of research and development
  • maintaining our strong track record of reducing global emissions

The roadmap provides a framework for setting economic stretch goals for priority technology (e.g. H2 under $2)-to accelerate the competitiveness of priority technologies with higher emissions alternatives. Each priority technology will have its own goal, developed in partnership with industry and stakeholders.

Australia’s climate action agenda is practical and clear sighted, driven by science and technology. There is enormous potential in technologies like hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, soil carbon sequestration, biofuels, resources and energy exports to reduce emissions while strengthening our economy.

We will focus on technologies where we have a competitive advantage, in partnership with the private sector and like-minded countries.

The Government will work with industry, investors, communities and state and territory governments to drive technology outcomes through the roadmap. A Ministerial Reference Panel of industry chaired by Chief Scientist Dr Alan Finkel AO, and research leaders will advise on preparation of annual Low Emissions Technology Statements.

Help shape our low emissions future

This is your opportunity to help shape Australia’s path to a lower emissions future. Your input will help inform the development of Australia’s first Low Emissions Technology Statement. This will guide the Government’s technology investment portfolio to reduce emissions and be the cornerstone of the Long Term Emissions Reduction Strategy.

Read the roadmap and provide feedback on our Consultation hub.

Submissions are welcome until 21 June 2020.

See a snapshot of the Technology Investment Roadmap

The roadmap outlines key technology opportunities for Australia in the short, medium and long term.

This figure shows key technology challenges and opportunities over the short-term (to 2022), medium-term (to 2030), and long-term (to 2050 and beyond). For electricity these challenges and opportunities include (a) in the short-term, integrating renewables; (b) in the medium-term, building out complementary dispatchable generation, storage and transmission; (c) in the long-term, expanding capacity to support new industries and exports, and monitor and consider overseas developments on small modular reactors. For the built environment, transport, industry, agriculture and land these challenges and opportunities include (a) in the short-term, boosting energy productivity, including in the agriculture sector, and improving soil carbon; (b) in the medium-term, electrification of industry and transport, solutions for hard-to-abate sectors, and improving soil carbon and reducing methane emissions to increase agricultural productivity; (c) new low-emissions manufacturing, and solutions for heavy transport, including hydrogen fuel cells. New opportunities include (a) accelerating the development of a hydrogen industry; (b) scaling hydrogen to reduce costs and gain competitive advantage, and exploring opportunities for carbon capture use and storage and bio-sequestration; (c) scaling hydrogen following international demand.

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