Australia secures $80m funding boost and first agricultural renewable gas project

Australia's renewable fuels sector has received a significant policy and commercial boost, with an A$80 million (£40m) government funding announcement and the unveiling of the country's first agricultural renewable gas facility.
Jenny Merkley, executive director of business and industry decarbonisation at the New South Wales Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, announced the funding to support industrial decarbonisation projects, including technologies to accelerate renewable fuels and low-emissions energy solutions.
The programme targets sectors such as heavy transport, manufacturing and gas supply where direct electrification remains difficult.
The funding announcement was followed by a project reveal from LMS Energy co-chief executive James McLeay, who outlined plans for a facility at the SunPork piggery near Wasleys, South Australia, that will convert piggery effluent into renewable natural gas for injection into the existing gas grid.
The facility is expected to produce enough renewable gas to power around 2,000 homes once operational.
Bioenergy Australia CEO Shahana McKenzie said the announcements marked a transition from planning to delivery.
"Today's announcements show Australia's renewable fuels industry moving from ambition to real-world deployment," she said. "Government policy support and commercial projects coming forward at the same time is exactly what is needed to scale this sector."
Analysis suggests Australia has sufficient feedstock to support a A$10 billion-a-year renewable fuels sector, underpinning more than 26,000 jobs while reducing reliance on imported fuels.
McKenzie added that projects such as the LMS facility demonstrate how agricultural and waste resources could anchor a domestic industry.
"Australia has abundant agricultural and organic waste feedstocks that can be converted into renewable fuels and gases," she said. "That creates new revenue opportunities for farmers, strengthens domestic fuel security and helps reduce emissions across sectors that are difficult to electrify."