An industry body has praised the strong backing from institutional investors for Australia’s transition to renewable energy.
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) has welcomed progress towards encouraging greater investment in Australia’s renewables transition.
At the Treasurer’s Investor Roundtable in Canberra last week, institutional investors said they would continue to look for opportunities to deliver the necessary capital to transform Australia’s energy system by 2050 and endorsed the government’s target of 82 per cent renewable electricity by 2030, as part of a new Energy Compact.
According to ASFA, another outcome of the Investor Roundtable was for the Net Zero Transition Working Group to consider ASFA’s Towards an Energy Accord report, which outlines a pathway to help unlock investment with appropriate risk-adjusted returns for institutional investors.
“ASFA knows that if we get the settings right, there is a great opportunity for Australia’s institutional investors to invest in large-scale renewable energy projects, and we welcomed the opportunity to present our report today to help integrate the investment sector into the renewable needs of the nation and unlock the flow of large waves of capital towards Australia’s transition to a low-emissions energy powerhouse,” CEO Mary Delahunty said.
Delahunty said that, in addition to endorsing the government’s 82 per cent target, investors supported the government’s proposal to identify priority projects and to work collaboratively with investors to design and pilot the service offering of the Front Door, which is set to provide a single point of contact for investors and companies with major investment proposals.
“There is great enthusiasm from the superannuation and broader investment sector for the next steps agreed in the discussion today,” Delahunty said.
ASFA further said that its recommendations, as set out in the report, would also make Australia an “attractive proposition” for international pension fund investment.
“The sophisticated institutional investment community in Australia, because of the successful superannuation funds, is like a blue-chip stamp for like-minded international investors. Attracting the highly sought after international capital will accelerate Australia’s transition,” Delahunty said.
“Decarbonising assets that deliver an appropriate risk adjusted return are increasingly attractive and important for funds to be investing in.
“We look forward to continued engagement between our sector and the government.”
Following the roundtable, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said that investing in the country’s national priorities presents significant opportunities for both investors and Australia.
“This is all about the best returns for investors and the best outcomes for Australians,” Treasurer Chalmers said.
“We’ll continue to work closely with the investor community to get more capital flowing towards our national priorities like housing and energy.”
