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Australian renewable agency fund excludes some biofuels

  • Märkte: Biofuels
  • 03.02.26

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) has released the structure of its updated low-carbon liquid fuels (LCLF) funding round under the Future Made in Australia (FMA) innovation fund, with a narrower fuel scope that excludes biodiesel, biomethane, hydrogen and ammonia-based fuels from eligibility.

Under the A$250mn ($174mn) LCLF fund's 2026 technology focus areas, Arena will only support projects producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), renewable diesel (RD) and methanol, describing these as having the highest innovation potential and strongest market demand in hard-to-electrify sectors such as aviation, long-haul freight, mining and maritime transport.

Projects "developing or using biodiesel, biomethane, hydrogen and/or ammonia as the end product are not under consideration", the agency said, marking a departure from earlier Arena bioenergy programmes, which allowed broader feedstock and fuel pathways.

The A$250mn fund, part of the government's wider A$1.5bn FMA fund, includes capital support for commercial-scale SAF and RD plants, alongside grants for pre-commercial demonstrations and feedstock development. The new programme also introduces dedicated funding for supply chain enablement and biogenic feedstock trials, areas not previously supported at this scale.

Separately, the Australian government will spend A$1.1bn to support the production of LCLF in Australia.

Arena's updated framework emphasises deployment rather than early stage research and development, with commercial project grants of up to A$50mn and mandatory alignment with sustainability schemes such as Corsia and the forthcoming national Guarantee of Origin system.

More than 70 stakeholders participated in the consultation process ahead of changes to funding eligibility, with Arena citing strong demand for SAF and RD projects and emerging interest in e-methanol for shipping.


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