Regional Energy Accord

Regional Australia is carrying the nation’s energy transition, hosting transmission and renewables infrastructure, navigating impacts and doing the groundwork for the nation’s energy transition. This work has the potential to unlock opportunities: to strengthen local economies, create new industries and build community resilience. Unfortunately, some projects happen to local communities, not with them.

The Regional Energy Accord is exploring a voluntary national framework designed to support regional communities, industry and governments to work together more effectively through the energy transition through a number of regional Roundtables.

The emerging Accord is intended to:

• Support regional coordination across multiple energy companies and government agencies operating in a region and at a national level
• Provide better outcomes, predictability and transparency for communities and energy companies
• Complement existing regulatory and planning frameworks, not duplicate them
• Endure beyond individual projects and political cycles.

The Regional Energy Accord is not likely to be business as usual and not just focused on the immediate here and now. It’s a new way of working, shaped by and for regional Australia.

• It starts local, led by trusted regional voices and builds on what’s already happening, not duplicating or overriding it. 
• It recognises the diversity of communities, rejecting one-size-fits-all approaches in favour of locally grounded solutions. 
• It asks everyone involved to respond to what is happening locally, but to take a bigger systems view of the future.
• It is about shared vision and shared responsibility. 
• It is a real opportunity to align, act and build trust, together, with outcomes that can guide the energy transition nationally, from the ground up.

To guide the Regional Energy Accord at a national level, we have established a number of key governance mechanisms: 

• Community Outcomes Group includes trusted national, regional and local leaders who stay involved beyond roundtables to turn words into action.
• Industry Impact Group brings energy sector leaders to the table to align strategy, investment and delivery with what communities say matters.
• Our CEO Council ensures the energy sector’s top decision-makers listen to regional voices and lead internal change.

All of this is backed by independent facilitation, ensuring the process builds trust and genuine collaboration.

Follow the journey of the development of the Regional Energy Accord across the regions of Australia and help lean in!