Carbon price should be set at $70 a tonne and rise six-fold by mid-century, says AEMC

Federal, state and territory energy ministers agreed in May 2023 to make cutting carbon pollution an objective of key energy laws for the first time. Photograph: Sonali Paul/Reuters

New energy market laws should set a carbon price starting at $70 a tonne, rising steadily to six times that by mid-century, according to the agency that sets the nation’s electricity and gas market rules.

In a report released without fanfare at the end of March, the Australian Energy Markets Commission (AEMC) announced an interim value of cutting emissions, starting at $70 per tonne of carbon dioxide-equivalent in 2024. That price should increase steadily to reach $420/t CO-e by 2050, when Australia aims to reach net zero carbon emissions.