Clean Energy, Not Dirty Gas

The energy market is broken. It is dominated by a few big companies who are pushing up prices and slowing down the transition to renewable energy for their own profits. Since the Electricity Trust of South Australia (ETSA) was privatised in 1999, household gas and electricity prices have soared. By selling our public assets and essential services, Labor and the Liberals have abandoned their responsibility to the community and expect everyday South Australians to pick up the tab. When an energy system is publicly owned, it exists for everyone’s benefit.

Electricity and gas are essential services and are too important to leave under the control of a few big corporations. South Australians are paying the highest energy prices in the nation, as cost savings from renewables are not being passed on to consumers, so it is time to bring ETSA back into public hands. As the first step, the Greens will establish a commission of inquiry to examine bringing back ETSA to provide publicly owned electricity.

While the federal subsidies for batteries are being rolled out, with some states providing additional subsidies to reduce costs significantly and bolster home battery uptake¹. 

Unfortunately, if you’re a renter, in an apartment or strata scheme, don’t have solar, or can’t afford the up-front cost of a battery, this program isn’t available to you. The SA Greens will bridge the gap by creating a Resource Efficiency Fund for the thousands of South Australians who live in community title schemes, allowing those living in community schemes or community strata schemes to access funds for communal household batteries, solar panels, water tanks, energy efficiency measures and works which make homes more resilient in the face of natural disasters such as flooding or drought.

More generally, the Greens propose increasing funding to scale up the South Australian South Australian Retailer Energy Productivity Scheme (REPS) to stack onto the Cheaper Home Battery Program. The REPS provides incentives for households and businesses to improve energy efficiency and connect to Virtual Power Plants (VPPs)², which encourages community grids rather than incentives for individuals, who bear a greater risk investing in a battery alone. The Greens propose increasing incentives to the cost of $80 million over 4 years.

^{1. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-06/the-battery-subsidy-and-all-you-need-to-know-for-your-household/105138430}

^{2. https://www.energy.gov.au/rebates/home-and-business-energy-incentives-sa}

Australia needs to phase out gas for it to meet its zero emissions target. 

South Australia has a clear pathway to phasing out the use of gas over the next 10 years considering its relatively low use of gas – at 27.7 per cent - compared to interstate counterparts. The Greens will phase out gas so that no new homes or appliances – heating, cooking and water – will be gas. 

Banning new gas connections is crucial to cutting back fossil gas use and emissions. Installing new gas infrastructure is expensive but the environmental cost is the most significant. We can provide immediate cost of living relief while also reducing emissions by replacing old gas appliances with energy efficient electric alternatives. This could save households over $500 a year in energy bills³. 

South Australia must ban new gas connections to homes, shops and small businesses as they have done in the Australian Capital Territory⁴. We propose introducing a Sustainable Household Fund that will dedicate $30 million over 10 years in no-interest loans for homeowners and landlords to electrify appliances in their properties. We will also commit government investment in upgrades to social and community housing to take these properties off gas and also government buildings and infrastructure at a cost of $15 million over 10 years.

^{3.  https://grattan.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Getting-off-gas-why-how-and-who-should-pay.pdf}

^{4. https://www.cmtedd.act.gov.au/open_government/inform/act_government_media_releases/rattenbury/2023/regulation-to-prevent-new-gas-connections-starts-in-december}

The SA Greens also have a plan to:

• Make mining companies pay their fair share in royalties.
• Introduce a South Australian big bank levy.
• Phase out stamp duty and introduce a broad-based land tax.
• Cut wasteful government spending on advertising.

By raising taxes on big corporations, our revenue measures will fund a revival of South Australia’s manufacturing skills, an investment in zero-emission technology for the future, and the resources to protect our natural environment.