Following roughly a decade of debate, on 7 November 2011, Australia's parliament enacted landmark Clean Energy Act legislation designed to set a price on carbon emissions. Effective 1 July 2012, the new scheme will impose a fixed carbon tax of A$23/ton on the country's top 500 polluters, which will then be supplanted by a market-based cap and trade mechanism from July 2015 onward. Key trends in this On Point include: Rising power generation costs, targeted subsidies to bolster RE project economics. Select PPAs denote sustainable wind role. Near-term wind deal flow likely driven by well-capitalized players.
Following roughly a decade of debate, on 7 November 2011, Australia's parliament enacted landmark Clean Energy Act legislation designed to set a price on carbon emissions. Effective 1 July 2012, the new scheme will impose a fixed carbon tax of A$23/ton on the country's top 500 polluters, which will then be supplanted by a market-based cap and trade mechanism from July 2015 onward. Key trends in this On Point include: