Australia targets net-zero emissions 'preferably' by 2050: energy minister

Australia is committed to achieving net-zero emissions as soon as possible, preferably by 2050, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Angus Taylor, said in a statement on Aug. 10, throwing some light on Australia's position at the key 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) meeting in Glasgow in November.

"The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Sixth Assessment Report on climate science reinforces the need for a coordinated, global effort to reduce emissions," Taylor said, referring to the IPCC report released Aug. 9.

"Australia is committed to achieving net-zero emissions as soon as possible, and preferably by 2050, and to meeting and exceeding our 2030 commitment, as we already have with our 2020 targets."

Australia, a large CO2 emitter and one of the world's largest exporters of natural resources including coal and LNG, has been under diplomatic pressure to set a net-zero emissions target. As part of its Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement of 2015, Australia set an emissions reduction target of 26% to 28% below 2005 levels by 2030, to be implemented under an emissions budget over 2021-2030.

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change which was adopted by 196 parties at COP21 in 2015. Its goal is to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and preferably to 1.5 C, compared to pre-industrial levels.

'Nothing has changed'

Taylor's comments represented no more than "a statement of intent" in reaction to the IPCC's Aug. 9 report warning of the dire consequences of inaction, said Aarti Khosla, director of think tank Climate Trends.

In a sixth climate assessment report, the IPCC said Australia was experiencing unprecedented climate change and could warm by four degrees C this century.

The government was "under pressure but nothing will be decided until close to COP26," said Richie Merzian, Director Climate & Energy Program at The Australia Institute. "Nothing has changed their positioning."

Taylor said that since 2018 Australia's projected 2030 emissions had reduced by 639 million metric tons of CO2, equivalent to taking all the country's cars off the road for 15 years. The government would release updated forecasts ahead of COP26 showing a further improvement, he said.

Adoption of low-emissions technology

While Australia is fighting shy of committing formally to a net-zero deadline, its Technology Investment Roadmap is positioning the country to adopt new and emerging technologies including those with low emissions.

In the Aug. 10 statement, the minister said the Technology Investment Roadmap is positioning Australia to be a leader in the next generation of low-emissions technologies "that will make net-zero emissions practically achievable."

The roadmap is to drive $80 billion of investment in low-emissions technologies in Australia by 2030.

The minister said the government would reduce emissions in such a way that livelihoods are supported, underscoring that Australia had set up partnerships with Germany, Japan, Singapore and the UK for research and development.

The government has been an early mover in new fuels research and development and has encouraged the industry to invest in large-scale hydrogen projects with funding help. On Aug. 5, the scope of Australian Renewable Energy Agency, or ARENA, was expanded so that it could fund low-emission technologies including carbon capture, utilization and storage.