Australia Expands Capacity Investment Scheme Target To 40 GW

Australia has raised its Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) target from 32 GW to 40 GW of dispatchable and variable energy. Falling costs of solar and batteries, along with the competitive nature of the tenders, prompted this increase of 8 GW.  

The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) announced the addition of 3 GW of generation and 5 GW of storage capacity to the CIS structure. It expects this increase to support investment of around AUD 21 billion ($13.6 billion) in storage capacity, along with close to AUD 52 billion ($33.7 billion) in solar and wind technologies. 

According to the administration, this increase will create more jobs locally, support Australian supply chains and manufacturers, and help replace aging coal plants and support rising demand. 

This is the 2nd expansion of the CIS scheme since it was originally conceived to support 6 GW of clean dispatchable capacity by 2030 via competitive tenders. Its scope was later expanded to include 9 GW of clean dispatchable and 23 GW of variable capacity in 2023 (see Australia Announces Plans To Auction 32 GW RE Capacity). 

With the latest increase, the 40 GW CIS target now comprises 26 GW of renewable generation capacity and 14 GW of clean dispatchable capacity. The expanded CIS will be rolled out from 2024 to 2027. 

To date, Australia has held 6 oversubscribed, successful tenders which are on track to deliver 18 GW of generation and dispatchable storage projects, according to the DCCEEW. 

The department recently opened a consultation to seek inputs on adding Aggregated Resources to future CIS tenders in order to accelerate the country’s transition to 82% of renewables target achievement by 2030 (see Australia Invites Consultation On Small-Scale Projects In CIS).