Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor said emissions reduction policy driven by "technology not taxes" would attract significant private investment.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer.
The panel,chaired by former Business Council of Australia president Grant King,said the government would attract more private investment in the Emissions Reduction Fund if legislation were amended to"enable a method to be developed for carbon capture and storage".
The King report also recommended an"expanded,technology-neutral remit"for the Clean Energy Finance Corp (CEFC) and the Australian Renewable Energy Agency so they too could attract more private investment in a wider range of technologies outside renewables,such as coal or gas-fired power incorporating carbon capture and storage. This would be a significant change to the remit of the agencies,which were set up to promote the development of renewable wind and solar supplied to the electricity grid.
Carbon capture and storage,which still has question marks over its long-term economic viability,
involves capturing carbon dioxide from industrial processes and transporting it to a suitable storage site for safe,long-term storage deep underground.
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Mr Taylor said emissions reduction policy driven by"technology not taxes"would attract significant private investment.
"The government will target dollar-for-dollar co-investment from the private sector and other levels of government to drive at least $4 billion of investment that will reduce emissions across Australia,"he said in a statement accompanying the report's release.
The Climate Solutions Fund was set up in 2015 with $2.5 billion funding under the Abbott government as an alternative to a carbon tax. It pays polluters to employ cleaner technologies and funds carbon capture through tree planting,soil carbon sequestration on farms and energy efficient systems in commercial properties,as well as methane capture from landfill and waste management.