The Sydney Communique of the Bold Goals Action Group

The participants in the Sydney meeting of the Bold Goals Action Group, a coalition of the willing working to accelerate the rate of deployment in the advanced bioeconomy, issued the following Communique:

The initial meeting of the Bold Goals Action Group was held in Sydney on 22 September 2023. It involved leaders of companies and industry organisations committed to guiding the development of workable decarbonisation strategies for those sectors of the Australian industry that have recently been identified by the Federal Government. The meeting was the first in a series of international engagement forums being conducted under the Bold Goals, Bold Actions initiative of the US Government, aimed at emphasising urgency and generating acceleration for introduction of low emission technologies.

Global liquid fuels and energy systems have begun transitioning to renewable feedstock as the pathway to emission reductions. But the current pace of transition is falling short of the necessary trajectory to achieve national commitments to reach NetZero by 2050, a target that may well be brought forward in coming decades. Immediate bold actions to accelerate this transition are needed.

Australia stands as a potential major renewable carbon feedstock producer, products manufacturer and consumer of low carbon liquid fuels providing domestic energy security, regional development, and access to global markets for sustainable fuels.

As leaders in development of Australian low-carbon fuel industries, the Bold Goals Action Group participants affirmed their commitment to working with government and all sectors of the economy, and communities to seize these emerging opportunities to secure sustainable economic growth for regional production systems and low-carbon industries.

The global initiatives arising from the US Inflation Reduction Act and G20 Biofuels Alliance are immediate opportunities in which Australia should actively participate to secure technology, finance, and customer partnerships. The BGAG participants call for increased and proactive government engagement with multilateral international partners, a national commitment to building sovereign liquid fuel security through accelerated domestic production of renewable fuels, and through industry actively pursuing markets that are seeking low-carbon liquid fuel and material solutions. The BGAG supports calls for the establishment of a $100 billion green industries support package to complement and catalyse access to opportunities arising from the US Inflation Reduction Act. Furthermore, BGAG calls for the Australian government to become an active participant and signatory to the G20 Biofuels Alliance.