Australia’s Renewable Energy Pipeline and Most Expensive State for Development
Australia’s renewable energy sector celebrated remarkable achievements during the fourth quarter of 2025, but questions linger regarding the vitality of its future pipeline.
The Clean Energy Council (CEC) recorded extraordinary commissioning figures for generation and battery projects over the three months, with nine generation initiatives completed, which constitutes 63 per cent of the total for 2025. Additionally, a record four storage projects became operational.
Future Prospects for Renewable Projects
Looking ahead, Australia has 80 generation projects alongside 75 storage initiatives currently in development, according to the latest CEC quarterly investment report released this week.
New South Wales (NSW) is leading the charge with 39 projects either financially committed or under construction. The state boasts a larger capacity for storage projects (4,307 MW/11,528 MWh) compared to generation capacity (3,153 MW).
Several other regions are also investing heavily in storage, with South Australia having 2,299 MW of storage and 945 MW of generation across 19 projects. Western Australia follows with 1,137 MW of storage compared to 1,090 MW of generation from 24 projects, while the ACT shows 250 MW of storage without any generation projects, totalling just one initiative.
Victoria Leads in Capital Investment
Victoria takes the lead with 29 projects in the works, which represent a substantial capital investment of $9.62 billion dedicated to new renewable assets. It’s worth noting that Victoria is the priciest state for project development on a megawatt basis at $1.86 million per MW, in contrast to Queensland’s $1.32 million per MW for an investment of $8.95 billion, and New South Wales at $1.17 million per MW with a commitment of $8.69 billion.
A significant portion of Victoria’s capital expenditure stems from wind energy projects, amounting to $4.65 billion, with an additional $2.24 billion allocated for solar initiatives. Conversely, Queensland leads in wind energy investment, committing $5.07 billion while solar investments remain at $480 million.
NSW has set aside $820 million for wind projects and a notable $3.53 billion for solar energy, indicating its priorities in the renewable energy landscape.
Financing Accelerates in Q4 2025
The CEC reported a surge in financing for generation capacity in the final quarter of 2025, with five projects—four in wind and one in solar—successfully securing financial closure, totalling 1.2 GW. This achievement outpaced the combined figures from the previous three quarters.
“Remarkably, four onshore wind farms achieved financial closure in the closing weeks of December, despite the absence of similar milestones for wind farms across the country earlier in the year,” the CEC highlighted in its report.
