A future Albanese Government will kickstart battery manufacturing in Australia.
Under our Australian Made Battery plan, Labor is determined to see Australia create more jobs and greater wealth for the nation by manufacturing batteries onshore.
This plan will see a future Labor Government:
- Partner with the Queensland Government to create a Battery Manufacturing Precinct in Queensland, backed by a $100 million Commonwealth equity injection.
- Create a Powering Australia Industry Growth Centre to provide advanced technology and skills development to businesses looking to locally manufacture renewable energy technologies.
- Support 10,000 New Energy Apprenticeships, including around 2,000 expected in Queensland.
- Develop a National Battery Strategy to bring government and business efforts together for the long term good of the nation.
These commitments are in addition to Labor’s National Reconstruction Fund (including $1 billion for Value-Adding in Resources).
Australian Made Batteries should power your house, your business, your school, and eventually maybe even your car.
We can shore up our electricity grid with safe, reliable and sustainable energy that’s Australian from top to bottom – and then we can sell those batteries to the world.
We have a unique opportunity to make Australia a world leader in a future industry that will create good jobs for generations.
There are an estimated 34,700 jobs and $7.4 billion in value to be made in Australia from battery technology and industries.
Labor will build a better future for Australia, one which capitalises on these opportunities.
For too long, Australians have wondered why we haven’t manufactured batteries onshore when we have one of the world’s largest deposits of critical minerals and rare earths.
On the Morrison Government’s watch, Australia is only realising 0.5 per cent of the value of global battery production.
This is largely because a lazy, decade old Liberal Government has been prepared to simply watch these resources be dug up and shipped off overseas for processing.
The Morrison Government has missed vital opportunities to build a local industry and create local jobs by manufacturing batteries here.
Labor wants our batteries to be as recognisable as Holden cars once were. Unlike the Liberals, we won’t chase manufacturers offshore – we will rebuild industry capability.
We want our allies and our competitors to know that Australia is a renewable energy powerhouse, not just a raw materials supermarket.
We have a clear plan. Labor will power a better future, delivering economic gains and Australian jobs along the way.
Quotes attributable to Anthony Albanese, Leader of the Australian Labor Party:
“The resources sector has been the backbone of the Australian economy for decades. Developing Australia’s battery manufacturing capability is a step towards the potential for domestic electric vehicle manufacture. Labor will create a Future Made in Australia. Australia should be a renewable energy powerhouse, not just a raw materials supermarket.”
Quotes attributable to Ed Husic, Shadow Minister for Industry and Innovation:
“Australia should be aggressively ambitious when it comes to battery manufacture. Labor is determined to see Australia realise more value of the supply chain. We’ve got the natural resources to become a renewable energy superpower. We need the government ambition to match.”
Quotes attributable to Mick de Brenni, Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen:
“Queensland’s publicly-owned power companies are already investing in more than 430MW of batteries with more to come. Battery storage will be key to the expansion of clean energy, by storing unused renewables for dispatch at peak periods, putting downwards pressure on prices. Our Buy Queensland procurement approach will require these sort of grid batteries to be sourced locally in Queensland, creating a pipeline of demand for new manufacturers which means more jobs in regional Queensland.”
Quotes attributable to Matt Burnett, Labor candidate for Flynn:
“Gladstone has always had a strong industry and manufacturing base. By investing in new energy industries like battery manufacture, Labor is setting up well paid, secure manufacturing jobs in our community for generations to come. Only an Albanese Labor Government has a plan for more jobs in more industries across Central Queensland”
