More renewable energy in the electricity grid will cause power bills to fall over the next 10 years, Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen will promise on Thursday in an annual climate statement.
"We've now got more rooftop solar capacity in our system than the entire fleet of coal-fired power stations across the country," he will say.
"That means households and businesses are winning on two fronts - looking after our future generations by bringing down emissions and bringing down power bills today, and for years to come."
An "energy wallet" that gauges total household spending shows residential electricity costs are projected to decline and households equipped with smart meters that can control small-scale energy resources will benefit the most.
More renewable energy will bring power bills down over the next decade, Chris Bowen will say. (Mick Tsikas/AAP PHOTOS)
The growing network of consumer-owned energy resources includes rooftop solar, batteries, electric vehicles with bi-directional charging, hot water heaters and pool pumps.
A household that fully electrifies could reduce annual energy expenditure by 70 per cent or $3500 a year, according to the Australian Energy Market Commission.
The Australian Energy Market Operator expects 90 per cent of Australia's ageing, increasingly unreliable coal-fired power generators to retire by 2035.
A rapid increase in investment to deliver new reliable renewable generation capacity, plus storage and firming, and transmission lines, will meet Australia's growing electricity needs as the coal fleet retires, according to the climate statement.
The Clean Energy Regulator forecasts the average annual renewable share to reach 45 per cent in 2025, up from 40 per cent in 2024.
Total added capacity of renewables, mainly wind farms, is expected to be as much as 7.5 gigawatts in 2024, with an additional 1.2GW of capacity under application that Mr Bowen says he expects to approve in early 2025.
Rooftop solar is among Australia's growing network of consumer-owned energy resources. (David Mariuz/AAP PHOTOS)
"The notion that Australia's ageing coal fleet should, or in fact could, be relied on to an even greater extent to power our system, is nothing short of magical thinking," Mr Bowen will say.
"There has not been a single day in the past 18 months without some coal fired generation experiencing unplanned outages."
But with the electricity sector doing the heavy lifting on reducing the nation's carbon footprint, while the resources-based economy continues to expand, critics have questioned the credibility of national climate policies.
A grassroots movement known as Rising Tide are calling for an end to approvals of new or expanded coal and gas projects and for a 78 per cent tax on coal export profits to support workers who must find new jobs if production is phased out.
Police ejected protesters from federal parliament's foyer on Wednesday after they chanted and sung, and hung banners saying "Albo: Stop new coal and gas or we will."
Hundreds of demonstrators also gathered on the lawns of parliament, and and protesters were detained after forcing road closures outside the building.
They plan to escalate civil disobedience in the lead-up to the federal election, after their successful coal port blockade in Newcastle.
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