Labor accused of 'sending the country broke' by chasing renewables targets, as report warns major delays mean Australia will fall well short

Sky News AU

16-05-2025

Liberal MP Andrew Wallace has accused the Albanese government of "sending the country broke" through its pursuit of renewable energy targets after a report found the nation was set to fall well short of Labor's goal.
Global consultancy Wood Mackenzie issued a warning to the government earlier this week, publishing a report which found Australia would not reach Labor's ambitious goal of 82 per cent of ­renewables in the electricity grid by 2030.
Major delays in the delivery of solar and wind projects instead has the nation on track to hit just 68 per cent by the end of the decade, 14 per cent lower then the target.
According to the Clean Energy Council, over $9 billion worth of renewables projects secured financing in 2024, with the government investing significantly into ensuring infrastructure is developed.
However, the significant cost of the investment has drawn criticism, with Mr Wallace using the report to question whether the nation was seeing a return on the spending of taxpayers' money.
"Everybody knows that this government is not going to reach its targets," he told Sky News Australia.
"We all know that you can't run a full-time economy with a part-time energy grid."
Mr Wallace argued Labor's focus on battery production, as part of its plan to offset the intermittent production of solar and wind, was inadequate and claimed the lack of baseload power could compromise manufacturing, harming the economy.
"Batteries are fine if you're gonna have a short-term drop-off in the grid, but the reality is you just can't provide, certainly can't, provide industry with the power it needs with batteries," he said.
While Labor has sought to highlight renewables investment and increased use of its Capacity Investment Scheme as proof Australia is on track to meet its ambitious targets, most experts believe hitting the 82 per cent figure is not possible within five years.
According to Wood Mackenzie, this could result in some of the nation's ageing coal-fired power plants being forced to continue operations for up to seven more years, further risking grid stability and doing little to lower the cost of power for households.
Mr Wallace claimed energy bills could yet rise further, before asking what "the point" of the government's ambitious target was given the pressure it was placing on families and businesses.
"We're paying $1,300 more a year in our energy bills and that is continuing to climb," he said.
"There's been those sugar hits that are in the rebates that the Commonwealth provided, and the states also provided, but, you know, that cannot be continued long term.
"The reality is that Australians are paying more for their energy costs, but paying more because we no longer have energy security.
"If you can't have energy security then what is the point in having these targets that we are setting ourselves, which are sending the country broke?"