Australia and Canada have formalised a new Clean Energy Partnership designed to help both countries work together on climate action and move toward net zero.
Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen and Canada’s High Commissioner to Australia H.E. Dr Julie Sunday signed the partnership earlier this week.
“This partnership will see Australia and Canada work together on shared convictions. It aims to seize the economic opportunities of clean energy, and face-up to the urgent global challenge of climate change,” the government said in a statement.
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“It reaffirms our dedication to the Paris Agreement and ongoing work under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.”
The partnership focuses on five key areas: trade, investment, standards and supply chains; grid modernisation and resilience; energy and hard-to-abate sectors; indigenous engagement; and climate change adaptation.
Australia’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water will work with Canada’s Department of Natural Resources to deliver on the partnership’s goals.
The partnership agreement comes during Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s visit to Australia. In a landmark address to parliament in Canberra, he expressed his desire for Australia and Canada to deepen ties on trade, defence, and critical minerals as his country looks to reduce reliance on the US.
Carney said Canada and Australia should work together as ‘strategic cousins’ to push back against dominant superpowers.
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“Countries like ours can compete with each for favour, or combine to create a third path with impact,” he said.
“This creates enormous opportunities for Australia to work together. At a minimum, to limit risk. But really, fundamentally and positively to build an increased prosperity and build our collective sovereignty.”
Australia and Canada have also formalised new agreements on critical minerals, with Carney saying the two countries could create “the largest critical minerals reserve held by trusted, democratic nations”.
