Agribusiness

Agribusiness

Agribusiness plays a critical role across the Australian economy, with a well-earned reputation for quality produce, innovative production methods and local employment opportunities – whether producing for the domestic market or extending into the highly competitive global market. This track record makes agribusinesses ideally suited to capitalise on the growing wave of energy efficient and clean energy technology.

The CEFC is an active financier to agribusiness and we’ve worked closely with the sector to identify where clean energy technologies can have substantial benefits for on-farm production and energy storage activities.  In an Australian first, the CEFC and the National Farmers’ Federation collaborated to produce a practical guide for Australia’s 85,000 farming enterprises, identifying 51 opportunities where farmers can reduce their energy bills by improving energy efficiency and switching to renewables.

Transforming Australian Agriculture with Clean Energy

Watch: Growing clean energy opportunities in Australia’s farming sector

Investing in agribusiness

The Grange goes green

Located near Geraldton in Western Australia, The Grange includes more than 14,000 arable hectares of dryland cropping of barley, canola, lupins and wheat. Soil types include clay loams (river flats), yellow sand plains, gravelly ridges and deep white sands. A zone approach to farm management is reducing energy use and lowering emissions per unit of production. 

Solar gets pumping

A Darling Downs cotton farmer has installed solar to reduce pumping costs with a purpose-built system that is providing a reliable supply with a fuss-free operating system. The solar system has been sized so that on a clear day, it will run the pump from about 8am until 4pm, with grid power mostly used to run the pump off-peak.

Where to act

Change your energy use

Solar powered irrigation pumps

Solar hot water and heat pumps

Rooftop solar systems

Biomass energy-from-waste

Cut your energy use 

Variable speed drives, high efficiency motors and pumps

Farm and process machinery upgrades

Efficient refrigeration

Efficient lighting, heating, insulation, ventilation and air conditioning

Lower your emissions

Farm equipment and vehicle upgrades

Co-generation and tri-generation systems for processors