The Australian government is advancing Australia’s industrial decarbonisation with a new $5 billion Net Zero Fund, aimed at supporting heavy industry to reduce emissions and scale up low-emission technologies in line with Australia’s ambitious climate goals.
Announced recently, the Net Zero Fund is part of the existing $15 billion National Reconstruction Fund (NRF).
It will enable large industrial facilities to invest in new equipment, technology, and processes to cut carbon emissions, helping firms capitalise on the global shift towards net zero.
The initiative is designed to ensure that Australia’s industrial facilities are future-ready while preserving quality jobs, especially in regional and outer-suburban areas.
The government plans to engage closely with industrial facilities and clean technology manufacturers to unlock investment and accelerate progress toward the national net zero agenda.
Industry consultation on the fund’s design and related policy measures will begin imminently, ensuring alignment with complementary investment schemes like the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
The fund supports the broader Industry Sector Plan, which outlines how Australia’s industrial and waste sectors can reduce emissions while enhancing competitiveness and sustaining employment.
This plan builds on key existing policies such as the $22.7 billion Future Made in Australia plan — supporting green iron, aluminium, and battery technologies — the Capacity Investment Scheme targeting significant renewable capacity growth, and the Net Zero Economy Authority focused on community and worker transition support.
Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science, Tim Ayres, said: “As Australia reduces its emissions, the Albanese government will ensure that Australian industry remains competitive and resilient, and that the energy transition is coordinated in a way that creates opportunity for Australian workers in carbon-intensive occupations.
“The Climate Risk Assessment Report, the first of its kind in Australia, clearly shows what’s at stake if we don’t provide the right kind of leadership that Australia needs at this critical juncture.
“The Net Zero Fund will be a vital component of the…government’s industrial strategy, which already represents the biggest pro-manufacturing investment in Australian history.
“The Fund will deliver targeted investments that bolster the transition to less carbon-intensive manufacturing and production processes, including at some of Australia’s most economically and strategically important industrial facilities.”
The government’s action represents a major step in supporting Australia’s industrial sector to decarbonise and contribute to the country’s net zero emissions goal by 2050, reinforcing its leadership in facilitating an orderly and prosperous energy transition across all sectors of the economy.
