Capital
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Vulcan Energy (ASX: VUL) said all major construction permits were now in place for building its upstream Lithium Extraction Plant for the Phase One Lionheart Project in Landau, Germany that will supply the European battery and automotive industries. Lionheart is designed to have the capacity to produce 275GWh of power, 560GWh of heat and 24,000 tonnes of lithium hydroxide, enough for around 500,000 EVs, per annum.
Brighte has secured up to $40 million from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) under the Federal Government’s Household Energy Upgrades Fund, that will support the roll out of up to $150 million in discounted green loans for energy upgrades— including solar and battery systems, energy-efficient heating and cooling, and EV chargers.
Global renewable energy investment in emerging markets excluding mainland China has nearly tripled, rising from US$49 billion in 2015 to US$140 billion in 2024, according to BloombergNEF’s latest Climatescope report. Developing economies’ share of global clean energy spending has averaged 18% over the past decade. In contrast, developed economies and mainland China have captured 42% and 40% of total funding, respectively.
 Projects
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Tilt Renewables, with a 1.9GW operational portfolio and a 5GW+ development pipeline, released its first Annual Sustainability Report that tallied the bill for a social licence. “This year we have shared over $1.1 million with communities through benefit-sharing initiatives, partnerships, and programs, and provided over $2.8 million to local councils to support regional growth,” CEO Anthony Fowler said. Targeting net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions for wind and solar assets from FY25, and across the portfolio by 2040, Tilt is also committed to “net positive impact” on biodiversity by 2030, with projects like Palmer, Waddi, and Liverpool Range Wind Farms designed to deliver tangible environmental benefits.
Policy
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The package of environment bills has been parked for now. Environment Minister Murray Watt is agnostic on how to get it through parliament with no “preferred partner”. “But as yet, we haven’t had any amendments provided to us by either side of politics,” he told Sky News. “And I know the Coalition are a little bit busy on a few other things at the moment, but hopefully they'll be able to turn their mind to it because business wants to see these reforms done.” A committee inquiry must report back by March 24, 2026, with submissions due by December 5.
Meanwhile Liberal Leader Sussan Ley said the Nationals were entitled to their own position, after the junior Coalition partner dumped net zero by 2050 and continued their resistance to energy projects on farmland. “Our joint energy working group has done an incredibly sound job up until this point in time, it’s continuing,” Ley said. “And we can look forward to a Liberal Party energy position and then a coming together as a Coalition . . . as two mature parties.”
Regulation
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The Clean Energy Regulator launched the Guarantee of Origin scheme that will track and verify claims about products. Initially, Renewable Electricity Guarantee of Origin (REGO) certificates — the successor to the Renewable Energy Target (RET) — will be open to eligible renewable electricity generators, including power stations already accredited under the RET scheme, and energy storage systems. It will later expand to include aggregated systems such as virtual power plants. The Product Guarantee of Origin (PGO) certificate enables access to the $4 billion Hydrogen HeadStart program, the $6.7 billion Hydrogen Production Tax Incentive and the $2 billion Green Aluminium Production Credit.
Technology
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President of the Australian Academy of Science Chennupati Jagadish, delivering an annual address to honour Australia’s first chief scientist at the Press Club, warned the country can’t make good on its critical minerals promises when the number of geologists is in freefall. “There is a global reconfiguration of our energy systems, necessary to decarbonise our economies, whilst not weakening them. Science and technology sit at the absolute centre of these changes … Sadly, I can say with both confidence and despair that science and technology is neither positioned nor valued as the national strategic asset it is — at the heart of our ability to trade, make deals, boost productivity and navigate geopolitical complexity.”
Climate
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Cop out at the final hurdle? Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wants to host the next global climate summit, so why isn’t he going to COP30? (Guardian)
People
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Simon Troeth was promoted to General Manager – Communication at the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA).
Professor Yao Zheng from the University of Adelaide has been awarded the 2025 Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year at the Prime Minister's Science Prizes for his groundbreaking work to produce clean hydrogen directly from seawater.
Research
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UNSW researchers have demonstrated a trick of the light that could allow photovoltaic cells to break through their theoretical efficiency limits. Singlet fission is a process where a single particle of light – a photon – can be split into two packets of energy, effectively doubling the electrical output. The researchers have produced the phenomenon in a material called DPND, or dipyrrolonaphthyridinedione, which is stable enough to be used in solar panels. “In principle, it’s just painting an extra layer on top of the existing architecture,” says Ben Carwithen, a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Chemistry. (ACS Energy Letters)
Random
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The Energy is undecided over who to cheer for in today's Melbourne Cup. Should we be backing Onesmoothoperator in recognition of AEMO? Or perhaps Flatten The Curve to get our demand and generation aligned?
