Largest ever single tender for renewable energy in Australia opens for bids

Australia’s largest ever single tender for renewable energy opens today, with the Albanese Government supporting private investment in 6GW of new renewable generation across the National Electricity Market.

Renewable projects can now bid to be part of the Albanese Government’s Reliable Renewables Plan which is delivering 32GW of new generation and storage into the grid by 2030 with the Capacity Investment Scheme.

The May tender is the first in a series of six-monthly tenders and is about delivering energy where and when it’s needed.

Projects through the tender opening today will have a target completion date of 2027 and will boost energy generation as aging and increasingly unreliable coal fired power generators retire and demand for electricity increases.

Our Reliable Renewables Plan is supported by negotiations between the Commonwealth and states and territories, aimed at improving reliability and fast tracking the deployment of renewable energy projects.

As part of those negotiations, 2.2GW of the May tender has been allocated exclusively for NSW, 0.3GW for South Australia, 1.4GW for Victoria and 0.3GW for Tasmania. The remaining 1.8GW will be allocated across the National Electricity Market, including Queensland, to the most meritorious projects.

The first round of tenders for Western Australia, targeting 500MW of storage will commence mid-year.

Projects will be selected through a two-stage process that takes into account a broad range of factors including value for money, timing for delivery, First Nations commitments and local community benefits.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen:

“We are getting on with the job of delivering practical solutions to keep the lights on for households and businesses using the cheapest, cleanest form of power – reliable renewable energy.

“24 coal plants totaling 26.7GW announced closure dates under the former Government and the Australian Energy Market Operator has confirmed we need generation now for reliability as more than 90 per cent of our coal generation leaves the market over the next decade – that's exactly what our Reliable Renewables Plan is doing.

“Unlike Peter Dutton’s risky reactor plan that has absolutely no viable solution for energy shortages between now and 2040, we’re getting on with the job of delivering solutions to keep the lights on for households and businesses now, using clean, cheap, reliable renewable energy.”

For more information, visit the Tender Documents tab at https://aemoservices.com.au/tenders/CIS-Tender-1-Generation-NEM