The McKell Institute and Blueprint Institute have today released a landmark report on the state of Australian energy policymaking, commissioned by the Susan McKinnon Foundation. The report is the first in a series that assesses the quality of policymaking across key areas, beginning with energy.
The analysis, which builds on the work of the late Percy Allen AO and the Evidence-Based Policy Research Project, takes a unique bipartisan approach. By bringing together think tanks from opposite sides of the political spectrum, the report provides a balanced and rigorous assessment of energy policy processes.
The report finds that energy policy is among the most heavily lobbied areas of government, with the number of new lobbyist registrations surging in the past five years.
It also finds that Australia is suffering from outdated regulatory mechanisms, especially evident through the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) struggling to process the growing volume of energy project applications. Originally expected to assess proposals once every five years, AEMO now faces hundreds annually. In 2024, it approved only 14 project registrations out of 419 enquiries, highlighting the system's inability to keep pace with a rapidly evolving energy market.
Similarly, the National Electricity Market (NEM) was designed around baseload generation and is struggling to adapt to the increasing penetration of renewable energy. The lack of structural adaptation poses risks to the stability and efficiency of Australia’s energy system.
The report recommends increasing transparency in energy policy decisions to enable the public to see the evidence and investment case behind all major energy policies and projects at state and Commonwealth levels. It also recommends strengthening lobbying regulations. Overall the report finds that without greater transparency, stronger regulation of lobbying, and improved governance, the nation risks falling behind in its transition to a sustainable and stable energy future.
Liana Downey, chief executive, Blueprint Institute:
“Achieving Australia’s bipartisan commitment to reaching net zero by 2050 will require a seismic shift in the way energy is produced, stored and consumed. It requires a substantial amount of long-term infrastructure to be built in the next decade, with high costs both of action and inaction.
“Coordination is critical, nationally and domestically, yet on many key elements of energy policy, Australia’s lack of bipartisan consensus has created an environment of investment uncertainty. We are facing real energy supply challenges in key states as Australia’s ageing coal plants come offline.
“If we are to meet the energy challenge and capture the exciting opportunities, we need our policymaking process to be based on the best evidence of what works and we need to keep policymaking running smoothly and transparently. Of course the politics in the energy debate has run hot in recent times, but this report finds there is actually ample room for reasonable bipartisan reform on energy policymaking.”
Edward Cavanough, chief executive, McKell Institute:
“Major resource firms with an interest in the consumption of fossil fuels have long pushed governments to moderate their climate ambitions. Major energy firms also play an active role in corporate affairs and policymaking.
“These sectors are well resourced, sophisticated, and deploy cutting edge government relations strategies designed to ensure the viability of their sector and enhance shareholder outcomes.
“Charities, advocacy groups, and scientific organisations have limited internal capacities and are less sophisticated at engaging with the political and policy process. This asymmetry of resources creates a structural imbalance when it comes to the public energy debate.”
Contact details:
Matt Coughlan 0400 561 480