Michael Mazengarb 10 June

The Queensland government has announced that it will establish a $2 billion clean energy fund as part of the state’s economic response to Covid-19 that will “supercharge” the state’s expansion of its renewable energy and green manufacturing industries.

The announcement is the latest in a flurry of clean energy announcements from the Palaszczuk government, and follows a $22 million commitment to a feasibility study into a new pumped hydro energy storage facility north of Brisbane and a massive 3GW hydrogen production facility successfully securing land for the facility in Aldoga.

The expanded Queensland Renewable Energy and Hydrogen Jobs Fund, announced by the Palaszczuk government on Thursday, will be used to invest directly in new renewable electricity, hydrogen production and clean energy resources projects.

In an announcement that comes less than a week ahead of the next Queensland budget, the Palaszczuk government will add a further $1.5 billion to the fund, on top of an existing $500 million renewable energy fund committed in last year’s state government budget.

The multi-billion-dollar pumped hydro project will create about 2,000 construction jobs.

“This $2 billion Queensland Renewable Energy and Hydrogen Jobs Fund is all about more jobs and more industries. It will also support the further development of Queensland’s resources sector while at the same time helping to deliver on our 50 per cent renewable energy target by 2030.”

The funding will be used to invest in local manufacturing of clean energy and hydrogen production technologies, new clean energy projects, and an expansion of the resources sector focused on materials needed for the production of clean technologies like batteries, electric vehicles and solar panels.

The commitment forms part of the state government’s $3.34 billion Queensland Jobs Fund and its efforts to support the creation of new jobs in emerging industries as the state recovers from the economic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.