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AAP
AAP
Politics
Lucinda Garbutt-Young and Noah Secomb

Coalition pulls out the chainsaw in energy debate

Fossil fuels such as coal are at the heart of the coalition's energy policy. (Dan Himbrechts/AAP PHOTOS)

Energy abundance above all else is the central theme of the coalition's latest pledge to overhaul the nation's energy future.

The eight-point plan released on Wednesday is aimed at abolishing incentives to build renewable energy projects in favour other energy types such as coal, gas, and nuclear.

It also includes removing four offshore wind zones, repealing the Climate Change Act to scrap net zero targets, and lifting prohibitions on nuclear energy.

An existing carbon emissions policy for vehicles would be canned and developers would be encouraged to invest in all energy types, including coal, gas and nuclear, rather than focusing on renewables.

Dan Tehan
Dan Tehan has outlined the coalition's energy strategy. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)

All this would be rolled out within 30 days of the coalition winning office according to opposition energy spokesman Dan Tehan in a speech to the Energy Nation Forum in Sydney.

"And not only that, there'll be a private members' bill that'll go into the parliament when we next sit in two and a half weeks, which shows exactly what we will do," Mr Tehan said.

"We need to take a chainsaw to Labor's green, ideologically driven approach to energy. We need to start using all our own natural resources."

Mr Tehan did not outline what the alternative mechanisms would look like and flagged another emissions reduction policy in coming months.

The plan contrasts with Labor's existing push to power just over 80 per cent of the national grid with renewables in the next four years which relies on the closure of several coal power plants to meet the target.

Conroy
Labor minister Pat Conroy isn't the least bit impressed by the coalition's energy strategy. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)

Labor cabinet minister Pat Conroy said he's surprised to see the coalition go "back to the future" on energy policy.

"I would have thought they would have got (the) message from the last two elections," he told reporters in Hobart, noting the impact Australia's energy policy has on regional diplomacy.

Australia is set to lead negotiations at COP31, the largest annual government climate conference, being held in Turkey later in 2026 and in hosting a pre-COP event in Fiji and Tuvalu.

"We're in a diplomatic contest for influence in the Pacific. If you're not serious about climate change, you risk surrendering our position in the Pacific to other nations."

energy
Wind turbines and solar panels are a vital part of the Labor government's long-term energy plan. (Michael Currie/AAP PHOTOS)

The coalition has long argued over energy targets and abandoned its commitment to net zero emissions by 2050 last November after intense internal disagreement.

Clean Energy Council chief Jackie Trad has labelled the coalition announcement an act of "economic nihilism".

""The coalition's eight-point plan collapses under the weight of its contradictions, promising abundant energy supply while cancelling new generation and dismantling investor certainty," she said in a statement.

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