Helping industry to reduce industrial emissions and energy costs

On behalf of the Australian Government, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has today
announced the upcoming launch of the $43 million Industrial Energy Transformation Studies Program,
announced as part of the 20/21 Federal Budget, aimed at identifying opportunities to reduce energy
costs and emissions in the industrial sector.

The first round of the program will see up to $25 million of grant funding being made available to support
feasibility and engineering studies to establish the business case for replicable projects that demonstrate
energy efficiency and decarbonisation technology solutions for industry.

Funding will be made available to companies and organisations in the agriculture, mining,
manufacturing, gas supply, water supply, waste services and data centre sectors.

The program will look to fund studies into industrial solutions that deliver transformational improvement in
energy efficiency or greenhouse gas emissions and also share knowledge that can lead to replication
across similar industry settings. Under the program, applicants can seek $100,000 to $500,000 for
feasibility studies or $250,000 to $5 million for engineering studies.

Applications for the initial round will open on Tuesday 6 July 2021. Interested applicants should review
the Industrial Energy Transformation Studies Program Round 1 Guidelines.

In September last year, the Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction, Angus Taylor, first announced
the funding program, as part of the Australian Government’s first Low Emissions Technology Statement.
ARENA has since consulted with a number of industry associations to seek feedback on the key design
elements for the program.

ARENA CEO Darren Miller said the program would help accelerate the decarbonisation of the industrial
sector, including heavy industry.

“While we’re at the early stages of helping industry transition to increased use of renewable energy, this
program will allow us to get a better idea of the innovative solutions out there that can help to reduce
emissions and deliver transformative change in the sector".

“We’re looking for studies into projects with significant emissions reduction potential, replicability and
backed with strong corporate ambition that can provide a pathway to Australia achieving the
Government’s low emissions objective. We believe that Australian industry is ready to take the next step
in creating ideas and knowledge that will position Australia for a low carbon future.”

ARENA has provided almost $100 million in funding to support energy and emissions reduction initiatives
in the industrial sector, including the Australian Alliance for Energy Productivity Renewable Energy for
Process Heat studies, ERM Power’s Advancing Renewables in the Manufacturing Sector study,
ClimateWorks’ Industrial Energy Transformation Initiative, and an emission reduction study in the
alumina sector by Alcoa.

For more information on the Industrial Energy Transformation Studies Program and how to apply, please
visit the ARENA funding page.