Picture this. Australia’s energy landscape is changing at a breakneck pace. Its goal is to coordinate the retirement of regional coal plants, while accelerating the construction of new renewable energy plants and expanding and updating the regional electricity grid. This transformation is essential for making ambitious renewable energy targets possible. To reach our goal of 73.3% of all power generation from renewables by 2035.
Australia’s energy landscape is amid a historic systemic transformation. This evolution includes installed capacity in gigawatts (GW), generation levels in terawatt hours (TWh), and shares of different technologies, including data from 2020–2024 and predictions out to 2035. The assessment features industry drivers, restraints, investment prospects, and company overviews for big players in this industry.
Australia is still an ocean away from achieving its paltry target of 82% renewable electricity by 2030. Delays in grid connections, community opposition to new transmission lines, and slow permitting for large-scale renewable projects continue to hinder progress. These pressures form part of a perfect storm looming to make the biggest challenge facing the country – the need to create a new, sustainable energy economy.
Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is expected to continue as the dominant renewable energy source deployed in Australia. The country boasts one of the highest rates of rooftop solar penetration globally, with over 4.16 million PV systems installed across various segments by mid-2025. With almost 300,000 new centralized rooftop or distributed systems coming on each year. This increase demonstrates the increasing importance of solar energy in Australia’s renewable mix.
The clean energy source most expected to grow the quickest is wind power, both onshore and offshore. Most of this growth is due to the establishment of Renewable Energy Zones. These zones are intended to facilitate the development of utility-scale wind and solar projects. Insufficient storage and firming capacity are leading to congestion and curtailments on the energy system. This unfortunate reality underscores the immediate opportunity for better infrastructure.
Australia’s long-term decarbonization strategy is bolstered by a few notable stars. These are programs like the Solar Solar Sunshot Program, Hydrogen Headstart, and the Critical Minerals Production Tax Credit. These combined efforts are absolutely essential if we want to keep up the momentum we have toward clean energy goals through 2035 and beyond.
To truly reach these ambitious targets, we need to guarantee ongoing policy support. Beyond that, we should get serious about building new infrastructure and supercharge investment in transmission and firming capacity. The deepening uncertainty around the timing of coal plant retirements adds to the already complex and dynamic nature of Australia’s energy transition.