The Case for a WA Renewable Energy Target

  • A Renewable Energy Target (RET) is a proven government tool to accelerate renewable energy generation  within an agreed timeframe. RETs have been successfully used by governments across Australia to hasten the transition to cleaner, reliable, and affordable energy. 

    • WA is the one of the only states in Australia without a Renewable Energy Target or equivalent. The Australian Government has set a target that 82% of the national grid’s electricity will be generated by renewables by 2030. 

    • Western Australia is not connected to Australia’s main grid. WA’s two main grids are the South West Interconnected System (SWIS) and the North West Interconnected System (NWIS).

    • 73% of Western Australians support a Renewable Energy Target for WA.

    • Our alliance of 17 groups - investor, business, union, climate and environment, and welfare groups - are encouraging the WA government to commit to an ambitious 2030Renewable Energy Target for the state’s main grid - the South West Interconnect System - as soon as possible. 

    • A RET will give certainty to investors, workers, renewable businesses and the community around the installation of solar and wind and battery infrastructure in WA’s main energy grid.

    • Social research shows Western Australians support a RET to bring down power bills, provide security to industry, create jobs for Western Australians and act on climate change for future generations. This is a win-win policy with an unusually high level of support across Western Australia. 

    • Renewable energy is strikingly popular in Western Australia. 81% of Western Australians say they want more renewable energy produced in WA. 

     Talbot Mills, April 2026

  • The RET would set a percentage target that WA aims to achieve for the amount of electricity generation that is generated from renewable energy within WA’s main energy grid (the SWIS). More specifically, the RET is for direct, utility-scale renewable energy generation into the grid. This is what would make a RET WA’s  roadmap for driving us toward a sustainable, low-carbon, affordable energy system. While WA has the potential to be a global renewable energy powerhouse, we risk being left behind if we don’t have a clear, committed signal of intention from the WA Government.

    We are currently the only state in Australia without a RET.

  • While individual project and transmission investments are a very positive step, they do not offer the same certainty as a committed government target. 

    A 2030 SWIS RET is essential for three key reasons:

    • Investment and Economic Certainty: Private investors, businesses, and workers need long-term policy and regulatory stability to back WA as a clean energy leader. 

    • Energy Security: The WA Government has committed to retiring state-owned coal assets, while remaining private coal and public gas assets are ageing and expensive to run. Having a firm RET commitment helps ensure enough renewables will come into the grid on-time to replace ageing coal and gas assets, rather than leaving WA exposed to the spiralling prices involved in running old power plants. Western Australians are increasingly supportive of having their energy future made here, not imported. If we want to make more things in WA, we need more energy, and the most secure way to do that is more renewables generated at home. A Renewable Energy Target is how we deliver it. 

    • Accountability: Individual project announcements - unfortunately - can sometimes be delayed or cancelled. A RET moves us from individual projects to a committed overarching government obligation, ensuring the community, workers, businesses and investors have certainty on the future of WA’s energy generation and can hold the government to account for its energy commitments.

    There is a clear public mandate for the WA government committing to a RET. This policy would bring our coal exit, federal goals, and state announcements into one unified public commitment. It is a move backed by the community: recent polling shows that 73% of Western Australians support a Renewable Energy Target, with majority support spanning the entire political spectrum (seven in ten West Australians, including eight in ten Labor voters, seven in ten Liberal voters, and five in ten One Nation voters already trust renewables plus storage to keep the lights on).

  • The South West Interconnected System (SWIS) is the primary electricity grid for the southwestern part of Western Australia.

    It is an "islanded" grid, meaning it is not connected to the rest of Australia. The SWIS services the majority of the WA’s population, extending from Kalbarri in the north to Albany in the south, and east to Kalgoorlie. Because the SWIS is isolated, a WA-specific target is essential to manage our unique energy needs.