Carbon bill will unleash clean energy investment: WWF

WWF's climate change spokesperson Kellie Caught said the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) is a great example of the carbon price at work, with $10 billion of the carbon revenue being invested in renewable energy deployment.

"The revenue raised from Australia's top 300 polluters will be spent in delivering new renewable energy in Australia, creating new jobs and generating less carbon emissions. It's very exciting for Australia's future," Caught said.

"The Clean Energy Finance Corporation will go further than the RET scheme by helping commercialise a broader range of renewable technologies like big solar projects, which will help develop new industries and assist with energy security.

"This critical institution has the capacity to unleash Australia's renewable energy industry and put us on par with clean energy leaders like China, the United States and Germany.

"Without the carbon price, governments would have to sacrifice other budget priorities to invest in renewable energy and transition to a low carbon economy. The carbon price is a smart way to invest in our future."

Caught said the Clean Energy Finance Corporation could be more effective if its investments were additional to the current Renewable Energy Target of 20 per cent. WWF is calling on the Climate Authority, when it undertakes a review of the RET scheme later this year, to look at how CEFC projects can be additional to the current 20 per cent cap.

"Energy companies are saying that the current market is already capable of delivering investment beyond the 20 per cent target, even in the absence of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation," Caught said.

"By making the CEFC investments additional, not only would we get a broader range of renewable technologies, but we would get more renewable energy in the electricity grid."