Speech to the Adelaide Convention Centre

**Check against delivery** Thank you, Chair. I move that Chapter Three be adopted. Delegates, there is no inequality that is not exacerbated by climate change.

And that includes the inequality faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. In acknowledging the Kaurna people, the Traditional Custodians of the land we meet on, I reaffirm our commitment to listening to, and working alongside First Nations Australians through this energy transition. That is why this Government is implementing the first ever First Nations Clean Energy Strategy.

This Platform commits to continuing that work. And to ensure this industrial transformation creates opportunities for First Nations engagement and advancement. Delegates, since we last met, a lot has happened.

Peter Dutton declared in 2024 that the 2025 election should be a referendum on energy policy. And the Australian people have made their voice heard. They have done this in two ways.

They spoke at the election, that is true. They gave this party, this Prime Minister, a resounding mandate to keep delivering a modern electricity grid and a fairer energy market. And to keep acting on climate change.

But since that time, the Australian people have spoken in another way. They have spoken through the decisions they are making each and every day. Through what they are doing in their backyards, on their rooftops and in their driveways.

Delegates, Australians are embracing renewable energy, consumer energy resources, and electric vehicles at a rate we have never seen before. Labor has delivered real change to how Australians generate and use electricity. It is worth taking stock of just how far we have come.

When I spoke to you at the last conference, Australians were buying a new electric or plug-in hybrid car every six minutes. Now they are buying one every 53 seconds. Since the last time we spoke, this Labor Government designed a policy to help Australian households, small businesses and community groups take advantage of their solar energy with a home battery.

And there are more than 481,842 reasons to believe that it has been a successful one. Just as the delegates in this room cover across the country, from our cities to our suburbs to our regions, batteries are being embraced by every electorate in the country - Nowhere more than in our outer suburbs and regions – where more than three quarters of batteries have been installed.

Our grid has significantly changed in the last 3 years. Renewables in 2023 were 35 per cent of the national grid. They have now hit over 50 per cent.

This is not just a milestone; it is driving real change. We are relying less on gas for peaking than we were in 2023, which is helping to drive down wholesale energy prices. And of course, last time we spoke, affordable small modular nuclear reactors were said to be just around the corner.

Now, affordable small modular nuclear reactors remain just around the corner. And I suspect they will be at the next conference as well. Friends, we also know that renewable energy is sovereign energy.

And there has been no greater reminder of that than the disruption the global economy has faced over the last five months. Delegates in this room know just how crucial an adequate supply of diesel is to keep Australia moving. And the risks we face from a disruption.

Our economy runs on diesel. From the factories to the trucks, to the warehouses, to the supermarkets. That is why Labor in Government has acted to secure Australia's fuel supplies and keep Australia moving.

Our sensible, calm approach means we now have more fuel in Australia than when Iran was first bombed. While others panicked and cynically called for hoarding and rationing, Labor worked constructively with industry, with workers, and with our friends and partners overseas to bolster our fuel supplies. As was the right thing to do.

But we have also acted to shield Australians from future shocks. The last five months have been a reminder of why we must continue to pursue energy sovereignty. Energy sovereignty through renewable energy.

Labor is bolstering renewable energy in our grid. Solar energy must travel 150 million kilometres from the sun to the earth. But it does not have to travel the 150 kilometres through the Strait of Hormuz.

The wind cannot be sanctioned. Batteries cannot be blockaded. The words put before you today recognise that the best plan for Australia’s energy needs is to deliver a modern Australian grid, powered by reliable and affordable renewable energy and backed up by gas, hydro, and storage.

That is why Labor is committed to reaching 82% renewable electricity by 2030. And we know we have to be all-in on this economic transformation. That’s why I’m proud to say that this chapter has been amended with my support to recognise the important role the public sector will play in this transition.

These words strike an appropriate balance between recognising what more the public sector can do, while also recognising the role that existing bodies like Snowy and the CEFC are already playing. Since the last Labor Government established the CEFC it has unlocked approximately $70 billion of private investment. That’s why these words recognise that at every stage the federal public sector must be careful and work collaboratively with states, and the private sector, to crowd in as much investment as possible.

I want to thank Michael and the ETU for leading work on this, which I know is of interest to many delegates here today. Because this transformation will be a whole of society effort. Delegates, this chapter before you recognises that we are in a crucial moment.

And only Labor can get this right. The global shift to clean energy is the biggest economic transformation since the Industrial Revolution. And it presents Australia with an enormous economic and jobs opportunity.

And we’re taking this jobs opportunity seriously. Take for instance, our Capacity Investment Scheme – supporting the rollout of renewable energy and storage across the country. I can report to this conference that so far, the contracts of this scheme have committed to supporting an estimated $35.7 billion in local content, including $907 million in local steel.

That’s something delegates in past conferences pushed for, rightfully so. We’re getting it done. It’s another example of how important it is to get this transformation right.

If the Liberals, Nationals and One Nation were in office, Australia would be languishing behind the rest of the world. As we did during the decade the Coalition were in office. And households would be suffering under an energy system in urgent need of an upgrade.

And then we the Greens political party. The Greens do not understand that this change must be managed in a way that looks after working people. Slogans might make for great chants, but only Labor has the solutions for our clean energy future – that looks after our workers, our prosperity and our environment.

This transformation will be measured by how Australia can not only reduce our own emissions, but grow a Future Made in Australia that boosts our regional economies and ensures jobs for future generations. And our ambitious and achievable 2035 target will see us halve our emissions again – while growing our regional economies and bringing workers along on the transition.

Only Labor recognises that this industrial transformation is happening around the world and that it is Australia's greatest opportunity if we get it right. Only Labor recognises that we can be a country with proud industries, proud factories, and a proud manufacturing sector — and reduce our emissions in line with science-based targets. Friends, Chapter 3 recognises how far we have come, and how much more there is to do.

It recognises that we must act address climate risk. To ensure adaptation costs do not fall disproportionately on disadvantaged Australians. It recognises that we must use the opportunity of clean energy to create secure, safe, and well-paid work for Australians.

It recognises that this industrial transformation must deliver community benefit. It recognises that nobody should miss out on the benefits of batteries, solar and improved energy performance. And this chapters commits Labor to taking further steps so that renters and apartment residents can access cheaper energy.

And it recognises just how crucial it is to look after the communities that have powered Australia for generations. Particularly the communities surrounding coal-fired power stations. Labor commits to ensuring that the communities that powered Australia in the past will power Australia into the future.

I’m also proud of the fact that this platform recognises the fact that this Government has made landmark environmental law reforms, including the creation of a National Environmental Protection Agency. This is crucial for our environment but will also be critical for the clean energy transition, to get new renewable energy projects in the right areas faster. I’d like recognise Minister Watt for all the work he’s done to make this happen and I expect him to speak further on that when he seconds this chapter.

Delegates we have been here before. Labor Governments have a proud record of managing industrial and economic change. Curtin and Chifley oversaw a period of power-war reconstruction, including the nation defining Snowy Mountains Scheme.

Whitlam opened up Australians to the world, cutting tariffs and engaging with the global economy. Hawke and Keating modernised our economy, delivered universal superannuation and did so in partnership with the workers of this country. Together, it will be this Albanese Labor Government that will ensure the global economic transformation that we are living through will be for the benefit of working people.

Delegates, I commend the Chapter to the floor. We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.