Ms BYRNES (Cunningham) (12:10): The Treasurer announced during the 2024-25 budget our $22.7 billion plan to make us an indispensable part of the global economy with a future made right here in Australia. The Future Made in Australia Bill 2024 and the Future Made in Australia (Omnibus Amendments No. 1) Bill 2024 will deliver on key elements of the Albanese Labor government's Future Made in Australia plan to return manufacturing onshore and bring Australian know-how back to the table.
We have not wasted any time on this side of the House. We are crafting programs and reforms to diversify our economy and build our sovereign capability, which, sadly, has been neglected for too long. We are investing in our workers and skilling the future workforce with a $10 million energy future skills centre at the University of Wollongong and a $2.5 million renewable energy training centre at Wollongong TAFE, and who could forget the half a million fee-free TAFE places across this country? We are supporting our homegrown industries to create a pipeline of well-paid and secure jobs, not just now but also into the future.
It is an absolute priority for our government to support businesses to invest, to grow and to embed innovation instead of moving offshore. These two bills represent significant advancements to reshape our national economy by strengthening local industry and reducing reliance on international supply chains. This is vital for regions and regions like the Illawarra. It will help Australia to attract investment into key industries to make our country a renewable energy superpower. We must ensure that Australia can navigate global challenges while developing domestic innovation, sustainability and economic resilience.
Whilst the Illawarra is well known as a steel city, we are now revolutionising the world of clean energy technology too. One company that I have spoken about a lot in this parliament is Hysata in Port Kembla. Hysata is on the brink of manufacturing the world's most effective hydrogen electrolysers, with their technology currently 21 per cent more efficient than anything else on the market, and that is Illawarra's innovation at its finest. Hysata is a truly homegrown story, starting their journey at the University of Wollongong's Australian Institute for Innovative Materials and then beginning their breakthrough with the university's business incubator at iAccelerate. Earlier this year, they celebrated the southern hemisphere's largest-ever series B capital raise of $172 million, and the Albanese Labor government was very proud to support this venture with a $15 million investment through the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. The world's hard-to-abate sectors are chomping at the bit, waiting for their expansion of manufacturing at their Port Kembla facility to reach gigawatt-scale production of its electrolyser to tackle mass decarbonisation.
But startups like these can't keep up the heavy lifting on their own. Paul Barrett, Hysata's CEO, summed it up perfectly this morning. He said:
Hysata has performed astoundingly in attracting private capital, but for companies like us to thrive and be globally competitive, we're going to need access to incentives like those provided overseas.
These incentives are what the Future Made in Australia Bill stands to offer, and why Hysata has openly endorsed it in our recent submission.
The fact is that the new 'no-alition' between the Liberal Party and the Australian Greens political party is actually discouraging Australian manufacturing and trying to push them out the door and out of the country. That is unbelievable.
On this side of the House, we proudly have faith in Australian ideas, Australian know-how, Australian workers, Australian scientists and Australian businesses. Our businesses are crying out for the support, and Paul couldn't have been clearer in his remarks this morning. He said:
Through Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Hysata has been a recipient of Government support along our journey. The international confidence in our technology is in part to their contribution. But for that confidence to lead to building a company that offers Australians a future, we need policy that acknowledges and supports the strengths of local industry and innovation. We have seen support for industries like Hysata's span several Governments, and it's time to have decisive action to get these critical policies passed.
As the Prime Minister said yesterday, it's clear that the biggest threat to Australian jobs and investment is not international uncertainty or changes in the global economy; it's those sitting opposite. They voted against the National Reconstruction Fund, against more social housing and against energy bill relief—unbelievable. Our Future Made in Australia plan will help Australia build a stronger, more diverse and more resilient economy powered by renewable energy. It will create secure, well-paid jobs and encourage the private sector investment that is needed to make Australia a key player in the global net zero economy.
This bill has three components. The first one embeds the government's National Interest Framework, which was announced during the budget, to help identify sectors where Australia has a genuine comparative advantage in the net zero economy or an economic security imperative. The second one establishes a robust sector assessment process to understand and remove barriers to private investment. It also establishes a set of community benefit principles that will make sure relevant Future Made in Australia investments create strong returns for local communities, workers and business.
The National Investment Framework identifies two primary streams for intervention. There is the net zero transformation stream, which targets industries essential for achieving Australia's climate goals, as well as the economic resilience and security stream, which focuses on sectors critical to national security and economic stability. Priority industries under these streams includes renewable hydrogen, critical minerals processing and clean energy technologies.
Our plan will play a key role in making more things in Australia. It will drive economic development in our regions and outer suburbs, like the Illawarra. This plan will go a long way in supporting manufacturers like Gravitas Technologies, in my electorate, who are producing two groundbreaking materials, georock and vulloy. Georock is arguably the world's most advanced and safest treatment of nuclear waste. It is already being commissioned by the UK and USA governments. The second product, vulloy, is a metallic ceramic product that has a significant weight-saving advantage for flight applications and can withstand ultrahigh temperatures, up to 2,000 degrees Celsius.
There are currently no comparable global competitors for this technology, and the Wollongong company are currently supporting projects across a wide range of sectors, including defence, aerospace and industrial markets. All of this has been developed in Wollongong over the past 10 years by a young and relatively small team, including a majority of University of Wollongong graduates, which is great to see when I'm walking around the factory floor. These companies collectively highlight the Illawarra region's pivotal role in driving Australian manufacturing towards a sustainable and innovative future, reinforcing its importance to the national economy and the global competitiveness of our Australian industries.
We want to ensure public investment and the private investment it attracts flow to communities in ways that benefit local workers and businesses, like in my region of the Illawarra. That is why a set of community benefit principles will be applied to Future Made in Australia supports that have been identified in this bill. The Albanese Labor government's goal is to ensure that these investments promote safe, secure and well-paid jobs with good working conditions. We are committed to developing a more skilled and inclusive workforce by investing in training and skills development while broadening opportunities for workforce participation. This approach not only benefits employees but also strengthens the overall economy by creating a more capable and adaptable workforce.
We also want these public and private investments to be able to work in collaboration with local communities, including First Nations communities and those directly impacted by the transition to a net zero economy. By focusing on achieving positive outcomes for these communities, we ensure that the benefits of these investments are widespread and inclusive, fostering stronger social cohesion and supporting regional development. The government is dedicated to strengthening domestic industrial capabilities by reinforcing local supply chains. We want to ensure transparency and compliance in managing tax affairs, including the benefits received under the Future Made in Australia supports. This is essential in maintaining public trust and ensuring that these investments contribute meaningfully to the broader economy.
Since we've come to government we've had a 25 per cent increase in renewables, record investment in batteries and storage, and over 330,000 rooftop solar installations in just the last year alone. We live in a country that is rich with boundless opportunities for renewable energy, and we are harnessing them for a Future Made in Australia.
