After a solar and storage dominated CIS Tender 4, Australia has now launched CIS Tender 7 for large-scale renewable energy projects. (Illustrative Photo; Photo Credit: Lakeview Images/Shutterstock.com) 
Tenders

Australia Seeks 5 GW RE Capacity Under CIS Tender 7

Projects under CIS Tender 7 must reach operation before the end of 2030, specifies ASL

Anu Bhambhani

  • ASL has launched CIS Tender 7 to procure 5 GW of renewable capacity across Australia’s NEM 

  • NSW leads with up to 2 GW allocation; Victoria, Tasmania, and others share the remainder 

  • Winning projects will enter CIS Agreements with the Australian government  

AusEnergy Services Ltd (ASL) has opened Tender 7 under Australia’s Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS), seeking 5 GW of new large-scale renewable energy generation capacity for the National Electricity Market (NEM).

This indicative capacity must be located within the National Electricity Market (NEM) jurisdiction, with the largest chunk of 1.7 GW to 2.0 GW reserved for New South Wales (NSW). 

Victoria gets only 1.0 GW in this round, but it won’t accept solar and solar-hybrid technologies since the state achieved the maximum award for these technologies in the solar-storage dominated CIS Tender 4 (see CIS Tender 4 Exceeds 6 GW Target, Led By Solar & Storage).

Tasmania gets 300 MW, while the remaining 2.0 GW of unallocated generation capacity may be awarded to eligible projects across the NEM, including in Queensland and South Australia.

All eligible projects must achieve commercial operations before December 31, 2030. Those with an earlier commercial operations date (COD), supported by credible plans, will score higher, according to tender terms.

Winning projects will sign a Capacity Investment Scheme Agreement (CISA) with the Australian government. If their annual revenue drops below a set level, the government covers 90% of the shortfall. If revenue goes above a set cap, 50% of the extra is paid back to the government. Both payments have annual limits.

ASL announced CIS Tender 7 on October 14, 2025. It will accept bids till December 9, 2025, while winning projects will be announced in May 2026.

To date, ASL has awarded 13 GW of generation capacity in CIS tenders, along with 5.78 GW / 21.57 GWh of dispatchable capacity out of 40 GW it targets to achieve through this flagship scheme of the Australian government by 2030 (see Australia Expands Capacity Investment Scheme Target To 40 GW).