CEFC welcomes additional $2 billion capital allocation from Australian Government
14 February 2025
The CEFC today welcomed an additional $2 billion capital allocation from the Australian Government, to support investment commitments via the CEFC General Portfolio.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen announced the additional allocation on 23 January 2025. The allocation was subsequently approved by the Australian Parliament and received Royal Assent on 14 February 2025.
CEFC CEO Ian Learmonth said: “This additional capital allocation is an important demonstration of Australian Government support for the work of the CEFC as Australia’s specialist ‘green bank’. This represents the first increase in the investment capacity of the CEFC General Portfolio since we were established in 2012.
“CEFC investment commitments through the General Portfolio include renewable energy generation and storage, property, electric vehicles, infrastructure and natural capital. They also include capital for our asset finance programs, which have already provided discounted finance to households, business and farmers across close to 80,000 smaller-scale clean energy investments.
“In the six months to December 2024, the CEFC made investments commitments of $1.1 billion through the General Portfolio, with a total transaction value of $6.3 billion, representing an additional $4.85 for each dollar of CEFC capital committed. This is a strong indication of the level of market interest in a diverse range of clean energy investment opportunities.”
Mr Learmonth added: “The CEFC works to achieve a positive return across our portfolio, with capital repayments and returns to the CEFC available for reinvestment. This recycling of capital has contributed to the ability of the CEFC to make lifetime commitments through the General Portfolio in excess of $14.2 billion to the end of 2024, across some 300 transactions with a total transaction value of more than $62 billion.
“We expect this additional $2 billion in capital will be particularly important in increasing investment in much-needed renewable energy generation and energy storage projects, which are central to delivering on our national emissions ambitions.
“AEMO expects investment in new energy infrastructure to support more than 60,000 energy jobs over the next 20 years1, with the retirement of coal from our system prior to 2040. CEFC investment commitments will continue to play a critical role in this clean energy transition.”
1 https://aemo.com.au/newsroom/media-release/energy-roadmap-lights-the-way-to-net-zero
