Australia’s geothermal rebate welcomed by industry

5 May 2010

The Australian government’s move to offer geothermal energy explorers eligibility for a A$1.1bn ($1bn) resource exploration rebate has been welcomed by the industry.

The tax rebate, which will come into effect on 1 July 2011, will minimise exploration costs for geothermal companies.

Brad Page, CEO of the Energy Supply Association of Australia (ESSA), said the rebate means the sector will not only be put on an equal footing with other energy sources, but will also contribute to the government’s own stated emissions reduction and renewable energy targets.

‘ESSA is delighted that the federal government will now put geothermal energy on a level playing field with the rest of the mining and energy sector,’ Page said.

In addition, he said the association was particularly pleased that the government had accepted guidance provided earlier this year stating that a tax reform applying to geothermal companies was both important and appropriate.

‘This decision will go a long way to helping Australia’s emerging geothermal energy industry play a major role in the transition to a low emission energy supply system by providing a new source of viable, emissions-free baseload generation,’ Page said.

The $1.1bn will be awarded over two years and will benefit small, pre-profit exploration companies that will be eligible for a tax exemption from their deductible exploration expenses before they become profitable.

The Australian Geothermal Industry Association said the country has the hottest rocks closest to the surface of the Earth outside of volcanic areas, anywhere in the world.

The most notable geothermal project in Australia is the Birdsville Organic Rankine Cycle Geothermal Power Station, which is the only hot sedimentary aquifer project producing electricity in the country.

Copyright © 2010 NewNet

Tags: geothermal

This story was published on Wednesday, May 5th, 2010 at 5:10 pm and is filed under Australasia, companies, geothermal, policy. You can follow any responses to article entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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