$100m loan makes NSW first recipient of $20b Rewiring the Nation fund
NSW will receive a $100 million loan for grid infrastructure and to help support renewable projects including long-duration storage, as the first recipient from the Albanese government’s $20 billion Rewiring the Nation fund.
As landholders around Australia push back against big transmission projects through their communities, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation will announce the funding for NSW on Tuesday, which is part of the state’s electricity infrastructure road map.
CEFC chief executive Ian Learmonth said the first investment through the Rewiring the Nation fund would help underpin investment in regional NSW and pave the way for increased clean energy in the state.
“Rebuilding our energy system is a large and complex task, with infrastructure projects requiring considerable capital, expertise and time to bring online,” he said.
“As a specialist financier, we are able to use our capital to support investment flows through to project delivery and revenue generation, providing confidence to the market and private sector investors.”
The Rewiring the Nation fund is a centrepiece of the Albanese government’s ambitious climate change goals, including 82 per cent renewable energy by 2030.
The CEFC has been tasked with assessing potential projects and distributing money to states and territories.
NSW ($4.7 billion), Western Australia ($3 billion), Victoria and Tasmania (the Marinus Link) have signed letters of intent with the Commonwealth about securing funding, but the $100 million for NSW is the first money out the door.
Under its electricity infrastructure road map, NSW aims to deliver 12 gigawatts of additional renewable energy generation and 2GW of new long-duration storage that it hopes will unlock more than $32
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