Backing businesses to innovate and decarbonise

The Albanese Government is backing Aussie businesses to investigate innovative technologies that can reduce emissions and improve productivity in hard to abate industries.

Almost $2 million from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will support ten businesses to undertake feasibility studies to deploy new energy efficiency and renewable energy initiatives.

It will help Brown Family Wine Group’s vineyard electrify their operations, Gippsland abattoir O’Connor Beef deploy new technology that captures biogas during wastewater processing, and Real Pet Food Co, one of Australia’s largest pet food manufacturers better manage heat from manufacturing processes and reuse it.

These projects will help hard to abate businesses across wine, meat, water and manufacturing, while making every watt count.

Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy Jenny McAllister said this funding demonstrates how ARENA is partnering with Australian industry to reduce emissions and costs.

“Businesses across Australia know that investing in energy performance unlocks productivity and energy savings. With these grants the Albanese Government is making sure that businesses from Victorian wineries to Western Sydney pet food factories can unlock energy and emissions savings.

“With ARENA’s expertise, these grants will not only help businesses scope and pioneer clean energy innovation but demonstrate the technology to help Australian industries decarbonise and become more competitive.

“In its first ten years ARENA invested over $1.9 billion in grant funding that unlocked total investment of almost $8.81 billion in Australia’s renewable energy industry. In the recent Budget, the Albanese Government will inject a further $1.9 billion so ARENA can help more innovative Australian businesses with clean energy projects.”

The projects supported include:

• $399,503 to investigate renewable energy initiatives and a covered anaerobic lagoon to treat wastewater at the G&K O’Connor meat processing facility in Pakenham, Victoria  
• $250,400 to develop a heat energy recovery system at Real Pet Food Co’s manufacturing sites in Queensland and New South Wales
• $244,677 to improve energy efficiency and examine electrification options at Quantem in Port Botany, West Melbourne and Brisbane
• $242,924 to modernise refrigeration infrastructure at the George Weston Food small-goods facility in Castlemaine, Victoria
• $205,000 for site-wide energy efficiency and electrification projects at the Beston Global Food Company dairy factory in Jervois, South Australia
• $149,850 to develop a decarbonisation roadmap at three of Unilever’s hygiene and food manufacturing sites across New South Wales and Victoria
• $147,800 to examine options to harness energy from waste through biomass processing at the Bindaree Beef meat processing facility in Inverell, New South Wales
• $117,515 to optimise energy efficiency across the Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water pipeline in Western Victoria
• $116,397 to identify low emissions and energy efficient technologies at the Brown Family Wine Group winery in Milawa, Victoria
• $110,000 to investigate a geothermal heating system to provide process heat at the Paper Australia barramundi farm in Latrobe Valley, Victoria