ClimateWorks has completed the first stage of their new Decarbonisation Futures report which analyses the abatement potential of a range of new innovations and assess how such innovations can help Australia reach net zero emissions sooner.

This new report builds on their 2014 report, Pathways to Deep Decarbonisation in 2050, and analyses new technologies, social changes and business models that were deliberately excluded from the original report. At the completion of the first stage in development, two summary reports have been published that begin to explore the future of decarbonisation across ‘Buildings’ and ‘Industry’ sectors.

The Buildings summary report highlighted promising technological innovations that could help push Australia’s built environment sector towards much needed emissions reductions. Solar PV and LED Lighting were identified as recent key innovations that could reduce building emissions, and heat pump technologies and electrochromic windows were recognised as emerging innovations that could spur building emissions towards net zero. This report noted the societal co-benefits of building energy optimisation, with increased energy efficiency leading reducing the demand placed on the grid during peak times – saving in electricity network infrastructure investment and reducing electricity prices charged to customer.

The Industry report similarly highlighted key and emerging innovations that are driving emissions reduction in Industry, while emphasising the enormous potential that existing opportunities and technologies offer for Industry. Regular energy data analysis, the inclusion of energy efficiency in corporate policies, technology upgrades and operational improvements were among some of the recent innovations identified in the report. Newer ideas helping to move Industry emission towards net zero by 2050 included 3D printing and material substitution, particularly in the buildings sector where timber products can be substituted in place of steel and cement.

More information here