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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Peter Hannam

Australia’s renewables boom fading as investors lose confidence, energy council says

A man repairing some solar cell panels on the roof a university, he is wearing overalls, harness and hardhat
Renewable energy generates 1.6 times the electricity used by Australian households, with 2021 the fifth year in a row of record new capacity. Photograph: SolStock/Getty Images

Australia’s boom in rooftop solar and large-scale renewables is fading as investors lose confidence, with the lack of coordination by the Morrison government partly to blame, according to the Clean Energy Council.

The warning comes as the industry marked its latest record year for household solar, wind and solar farms, and big batteries. Renewable energy’s share of the electricity supply reached 32.5%, doubling since 2017, the council said in its annual report.

In 2021, clean energy capacity grew by 6.3 gigawatts, or about four times that of AGL’s Liddell coal-fired power plant. The Liddell power station will shut the first of its four units on Friday ahead of a complete closure slated for April 2023.

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