ESG Snapshot: Issue 93

This week's highlights include:

• 'Relatively high risk'. The NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer has assessed the risk of interruptions to the NSW energy market over the next 12 months.
• 'Shorter than a jam roll'. NSW councils in REZ areas have complained to a parliamentary hearing about overwhelming consultation demands.
• EV procurement and slavery. The NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner has released the first of three reports on state government EV purchases.
• 'Moral authority'. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has urged Pacific islands to 'unify us in our mission to preserve our planet'.
• Built-in carbon. Building a home typically results in 185 tonnes of CO2, while 60 years of occupancy results in only 24 tonnes, says a new report.
• New event listings, including 'How Australian councils can support a fossil fuel treaty', and 'The role of chief sustainability officers in setting strategy'.
• Jobs include an executive director climate role with the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment, and Water.

ESG Snapshot - powered by the Business Council for Sustainable Development Australia and curated by ESG communications and content consultancy Earthed.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has delivered a speech in Suva strongly focused on climate change.

"We have listened to the Pacific's call for urgent climate action – and we are on track to deliver $3 billion in climate finance by this year," the Minister said.

"And we are backing Pacific climate solutions by investing in the Pacific Resilience Facility, a Pacific-led and Pacific-owned facility to deliver climate finance directly to communities.

"In these communities we see the injustice of the climate crisis – where those who contributed the least to the crisis, are the most vulnerable to its impacts.

"Australia is working to build resilience in these communities. And in 2023 - in a world first for a legally binding agreement – we provided legal protection for Tuvalu's sovereignty in the face of sea level rise, through the Tuvalu-Australia Falepili Union," she said.

"Pacific voices have long been – and continue to be – at the forefront of global climate advocacy. And Australia will advocate with you."

"I urge the Pacific to use its voice, its moral authority, to bridge the divides, to bring the global north and global south together and unify us in our mission to preserve our planet," the Minister said.

"Next year we hope a COP31 hosted by Australia and the Pacific helps give you that platform, and we will stand with you in demonstrating the urgency of this crisis to the world."

Resources Minister Madeleine King has signalled the establishment of a taskforce to advance the government's proposed Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve, in a speech to the AFR Mining Summit.

"I will soon establish a Taskforce made up of the private and public sectors to finalise the design of the Reserve, including on the detail around what price the government may offer, how a reserve would function and where reserves could be located," the Minister said.

"A Strategic Reserve will mean government has the power to purchase, own and sell critical minerals found here in Australia," King said. "It will allow us to deal with trade and market disruptions from a position of strength." 

"We know these minerals are subject to price manipulation and that western producers are all too often priced out of the market, or that rare earths and critical minerals are subject to arbitrary export bans or controls," the Minister said.

"These are issues that industry raised with me repeatedly during the last three years of the Albanese government," she said. 

Solar company 5B has become the first beneficiary of the ARENA-administered $1 billion Solar Sunshot program, receiving a total of $46 million to scale up production of Maverick solar panels at its Adelaide manufacturing facility.

The Maverick system is made up of prefabricated panels, which are folded like an accordion into shipping containers, "meaning they can be deployed up to 10 times faster and at significantly lower costs", according to the federal government.

The $46 million grant funding is made up of a production credit of up to $26 million based on 5B's Australian-based production for large-scale solar deployed in Australia, and a $20 million capital grant to implement technology design improvements.

The National Energy Market review panel has scheduled an online public forum for 3 June.

The Australian National Audit Office has released an audit of Treasury's implementation of the Measuring What Matters Framework, finding it has been "largely effective".

A new report from the Green Building Council of Australia shows that the construction and furnishing of a typical detached home results in 185 tonnes of upfront carbon emissions.

That is far larger than the operational emissions from a typical home, which sit at just 24 tonnes over 60 years, when powered by Australia’s increasingly decarbonised electricity grid. If powered entirely by solar, the operational emissions drop to close to zero.

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation said the report highlights the need to embed sustainability earlier in the building process, to deliver long-term emissions reductions and economic benefits.

“Reducing embodied carbon in new housing is one of the next frontiers for decarbonisation,” said CEFC Head of Property, Michael Di Russo.

The Productivity Commission is seeking responses by 6 June to a survey on investing in cheaper, cleaner energy and the net zero transformation.

The ACCC has issued a draft determination proposing to authorise Energy Networks Australia, Synergy, and others to jointly procure and implement a national 'public key infrastructure' service (PKI).

Various distribution network businesses will use the same national PKI to communicate with consumer devices to remotely limit or prevent them exporting energy into the grid at times of significant excess production.

The Australian Energy Market Commission has overhauled the technical requirements for connecting to the national electricity grid, and has proposed other changes to manage new large energy users, such as data centres and hydrogen electrolysers.

The AEMC has published its final determination on "Package 1" improvements to the National Electricity Market access standards, which focuses on making it faster and cheaper for renewable energy generators to connect to the grid. 

It is also seeking stakeholder feedback on "Package 2", which proposes new requirements for large energy users to ensure power system security.

The Carbon Market Institute has issued an analysis of a CSIRO paper on grazing impacts in Australia's rangelands, which is relevant to calculating changes in carbon stocks.

The CSIRO paper is available here.

The Superpower Institute has issued a report on The New Energy Trade, which concludes Australia could contribute up to 9.6% of the world's emissions reductions, while generating larger revenues than those typically delivered by fossil fuel exports.

A Let Me Sum Up podcast episode on the report is available here.

Open consultations:

• The Emissions Reduction Assurance Committee has released an exposure draft of a new landfill gas ACCU method. Comments are due by 12 June.

EPBC developments:

• A referral for Origin Energy's Yanco Delta wind farm is now open for comment, and a referral for an associated transmission line is also open for comment.
• Comments are now being sought on the referral for the Eastern Hub battery firming project on the NSW Salisbury Plains.
• DCCEEW has decided that the Burdekin BESS and transmission line requires EPBC approval.

The Queensland government has launched a statutory review of the environmentally relevant activity (ERA) standards and prescribed methodologies, which are part of the Great Barrier Reef protection regulations for sugarcane and banana cultivation and beef cattle grazing.

Comments are due by 8 August.

Meanwhile, the state government is teaming up with two universities to form a new Catchment Water Quality Alliance.

The Alliance aims to assist communities and organisations take better care of Queensland ecosystems, by improving water quality monitoring, developing data sharing platforms and engaging regional stakeholders.

The efforts of the Alliance will build on work already underway such as the Great Barrier Reef Catchment Loads Monitoring Program (GBRCLMP) and the South East Queensland Catchments Water Quality Monitoring Program.

The Queensland government has committed $2 million to expand local government battery collection points.

Grants of up to $100,000 are available for Queensland councils or groups of councils to expand their collection points. Applications must be submitted by 10 July.

The Queensland government will help safeguard populations of purple-necked rock-wallabies through a $364,000 offset project that will fund environmental improvements on Chidna Station, a 26,000-hectare pastoral lease north of Mount Isa.

The offset project will be implemented in collaboration with environmental management group Conservation Partners.

Transcript of a Dubbo hearing of a parliamentary committee inquiry into the community impact of renewable energy zones is now available.

Council officials, landowners and renewable energy companies gave evidence at the hearing, with council officials generally expressing concern about inadequate planning and large consultation burdens.

"The Central-West Orana Renewable Energy Zone—the first in New South Wales—has been marked by an alarming lack of planning, leadership and coordination," one council official told the hearing.

"My tenure's only been shorter than a jam roll, but I have, like these other guys,
attended an enormous amount of meetings with proponents, some good and some bad," another council delegate told the inquiry.

Council officials said some companies had engaged well on their projects, while others were clearly only interested in getting them to a certain point and flipping them to another business.

Meanwhile, a representative from Squadron Energy told the hearing that the company had "engaged early in Dubbo".

"We've also partnered on an accommodation solution for our workforces. We have entered into an agreement to lease 10 hectares of land from council for a workforce village.

"It's on the urban fringe. We did that to ensure full economic benefit is realised by the broader community. The REMPLAN data the council provided regarding that village and moving it into town indicates it will add $250 million worth of economic activity to the local economy each year."

There is a "relatively high risk" of interruptions to the NSW energy market and normal system operation over the next 12 months, concludes a new report from the NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer.

"This risk is increasing over time," it says.

"Adjustments to the NEM to accommodate the ongoing transition to renewables have lacked a coherent, coordinated strategy for reform, making the NEM less reliable and unlikely to support the future energy system," it says.

"Investment in the gas supply chain is urgently needed to ensure its role as a transition fuel source," it adds.

"Increasing network complexity and delays to approval, construction and commissioning of new generation and transmission capacity are increasing the overall risk to NEM reliability and resilience," the report adds.

"Changing climatic patterns and unpredictable extreme weather events are putting further pressure on the energy systems and emergency responses," it warns.

Consultation opportunity - net zero. The NSW Net Zero Commission has issued a consultation paper on the transition to net zero, and the work of the Commission. Comments are due by 11 July.

The Office of the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner has released the first of three reports examining modern slavery risks in the procurement of electric
vehicles and EV charging infrastructure by NSW government agencies.

The initial report aims to provide a "baseline understanding" of relevant legislation and principles, and describes sources of information about risks in EV and charging infrastructure supply chains.

It also flags the Commissioner's power to create codes of practice, and notes that a code of practice on managing modern slavery risks in the renewables sector is being developed in conjunction with the Clean Energy Council.

A draft code will be released for public comment "in coming months", the report says.

The second report will focus on bus procurement, and the this will provide "a broader analysis of government agencies' modern slavery risk management practices in EV procurements.

The NSW government has held a roundtable meeting with industry, community and union leaders in Wollongong to discuss plans to establish NSW's first 'urban renewable energy zone' in the Illawarra region.

The roundtable coincided with the signing of a new memorandum of understanding between EnergyCo, which leads the delivery of REZs, and local electricity distribution system operator, Endeavour Energy, to jointly develop innovative network and battery solutions within the REZ.

Transcript of a 20 May hearing of a parliamentary committee inquiry into PFAS is now available.

The NSW EPA has awarded almost $3 million for 13 waste and recycling projects proposed by councils and regional waste groups, in the third round of grants under the Local Government Waste Solutions Fund.

The EIS for Sunspot's proposed 150MW Tilibuster Stage 2 solar farm near Armidale is now open for comment, as is the EIS for Edify's 90MW Brewongle solar farm, near Bathurst.

Iberdrola's Flyers Creek wind farm has become the first project to commence commercial operations supported by a NSW Long-Term Energy Service Agreement (LTESA).

The Flyers Creek wind farm, located near Orange, has a capacity of 140MW.

The project was awarded a generation LTESA under NSW Roadmap Tender Round 4, which was announced in June 2024.

Consultation opportunity - heritage. The NSW government is consulting on a new draft heritage strategy. Comments are due by 13 July.

Open consultations:

• Comments are due by 25 June on the draft NSW waste and circular infrastructure plan.
• Comments are due by 10 June on the proposed Protection from Harmful Radiation Regulation 2025.

Victoria's latest Budget allocates $10 million in the coming financial year to develop the state's offshore wind sector, and also provides funding to incorporate insulation upgrades into the Victorian Energy Upgrades program.

The Budget also includes $50.6 million in FY26 to provide a power saving bonus to vulnerable consumers.

In addition, a total of $1.5 million will be spent this coming financial year on the development of an industrial renewable gas certificate scheme.

A total of $400,000 has also been allocated to start developing standalone industrial hemp legislation "to address regulatory barriers and support the growth of the emerging Victorian industrial hemp sector".

Open consultations:

• VicGrid's draft 2025 Victorian transmission plan proposes seven renewable energy zones, a Gippsland shoreline renewable energy zone, and new transmission lines required out to 2040. Comments are due by 24 June.

Open consultations:

• Comments on a draft Tasmanian Future Clean Fuels Strategy are due by 4 July.

The ACCC has issued a final determination authorising the City of Onkaparinga, City of Holdfast Bay, City of West Torrens, City of Salisbury, Town of Gawler and City of Port Adelaide Enfield to form a joint renewable electricity buying group.

The SA EPA has established a groundwater prohibition area in parts of Kilburn, near the former Islington Railyard. It follows assessment of groundwater quality in the area that confirmed the presence of hexavalent chromium and trichloroethene.

The Murujuga rock art monitoring program has released its second monitoring report, examining the impact of industrial emissions on the rock art that extends over an area covering the Burrup Peninsula and the Dampier Archipelago .

"Overall, it appears that some anthropogenic impacts have occurred, however at this stage these are most likely attributable to historic (higher) emission levels, rather than current levels," it concludes.

"The likely dominant mechanism for any effect appears to be direct impact of emissions rather than rainfall, which is not currently acidic as previous research has suggested."

The report was prepared by WSP and Curtin University for the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation and the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation.

The NT government has awarded a tender to provide technical advice on the Territory Energy Link – a proposed 670-kilometre multi-user infrastructure corridor stretching from Elliott to Darwin.

"This expert support will drive corridor planning and pipeline development, ensuring the 670km priority section is development-ready by 2028," the NT government said.

The project will deliver a buried services corridor designed to carry gas, water, optical fibre, hydrogen and other utilities.

"It will connect the Beetaloo to Darwin and the world, laying the foundations for billions in investment and thousands of local jobs," said Infrastructure Minister Bill Yan.

New listings are in blue.

At Shell's annual general meeting in London, a total of 20.55% voted for a shareholder resolution asking the energy company to justify the assumptions behind its LNG growth strategy and explain how it's consistent with the company’s climate commitments.

The Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility said the vote constituted "a strong signal to Shell that the quality of its disclosures is out of step with the size of the bet it is taking on LNG".

"This is a clear call from investors for better disclosure from Shell, so they can properly appraise the material risks of its LNG strategy. This includes the risk that the company won’t be able to meet its climate commitments, and the risk of value destruction if the LNG prices or demand are weaker than Shell is expecting."

The latest annual global Circularity Gap report concludes there has been a continued decline in circularity. The vast majority of materials entering the company are virgin, with the share of secondary materials falling from 7.2% to 6.9% since the last analysis.

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