Australia’s 35-by-35 Electrification Pledge: Opportunity Starts with the Grid

It's almost 100 years since consumers were captured by the ‘Now you’re cooking with gas’ campaign.

Almost half a century later, the electricity industry in Australia had a go with its own ‘Switched on Living’ drive, while who could forget the natural gas ‘Living Flame’ ads on rotation across Australian TV screens throughout the 1980s.

Well, it’s now time for another energy focused campaign to capture our attention – The 35 by 35 pledge.

The 35 by 35 electrification pledge was announced recently by the United Nations’ COP 31 Presidency, alongside Australia’s Minister for Climate Change and Energy and COP31 President of Negotiations Chris Bowen.

The 35 by 35 mantra was also adopted by the Electrify Now campaign in Australia with the support of 30 industry bodies, consumer groups, and trade unions.

It was part of the global Electrify Now campaign, launched during London Climate Action Week.

35 by 35 is memorable in its phrasing, but also timely in helping to focus our attention on the productivity potential of electrification here in Australia.

The 35 by 35 pledge plans to increase electricity’s share of global final energy consumption from just over 20 per cent today to 35 per cent by 2035.

For Australia, it’s hoped that it will mobilise action to accelerate electrification across transport, industry – including the resources sector and data centres, as well as residential and commercial buildings.

Australia’s mining sector consumes about 10 percent of the country’s energy, yet it only sources about one third of that energy from electricity.

Demand for critical, strategic and rare earth minerals is expected to drive continued growth in the sector, meaning there are significant opportunities to increase electricity’s share of total energy use.

There are also large gains to be made in the electrification of transport in Australia. The sector accounts for about 22 percent of the country’s carbon emissions, but that has started to fall with the rapid uptake of electric vehicles.

The growth in energy use from data centres in Australia is expected to outpace every other sector by a long way. Data centres currently use about three percent of all electricity use across the National Electricity Market. That share is expected to increase seven fold by 2050.

There is a lot of upside in meeting the 35 by 35 electrification target.

Roughly 90 percent of all the oil and diesel used on our roads, farms and across industrial processes in Australia is imported. In a volatile world, this leaves us vulnerable to shortages, price spikes and the associated economy-wide impacts.

Increasing the use of electricity generated on shore across these sectors improves our energy security and independence.

It’s also cheaper. According to a report recently released by the International Energy Agency, greater electrification could cut the world’s energy import bills by more than USD 500 billion every year.

Lastly, as we replace carbon intensive sources of energy with electricity made from renewable sources, there is a comparable reduction in carbon emissions and pollution. That’s good for human health, and the health of the planet.

The environmental impacts of a warming planet are very real issues for Australia’s neighbours in the Pacific, and this forms a key part of its policy platform at COP 31.

This includes improving Pacific nations’ access to climate finance and putting more focus on resilience and oceans as a critical pillar of climate action.

According to the Green Building Council of Australia, on our existing trajectory, electricity will account for around 25% of final energy demand by 2035.

To reach 35%, we need to electrify around four times faster than we are today.

And to feed this growing demand we must step up the expansion of least cost renewable energy and storage. However, as we were reminded recently by the Australian Energy Market Operator, we won’t be successful without the support of a bigger and stronger electricity grid.

This grid expansion plays two equally essential roles. It connects new sources of renewable generation and storage with the cities and regions that need it.

Secondly, it strengthens our electricity system through more interconnection.

Australia’s renewable energy and storage credentials are well known.

According to the Clean Energy Council, Australia’s utility scale and home storage market is one the largest in the world, with only China and the United States higher up the list.

Rates of household solar installations in Australia are the highest in the world, and the commercial and industrial solar market is expected to hit new heights following new government programs and support.

Renewables are consistently supplying around 50 percent of our national energy demands, with states like Tasmania and South Australia increasingly supplied by 100 percent renewable generation.

Interestingly, new data released this month from Rystad Energy also showed that wholesale electricity prices in Australia were lower than almost every other major economy for the first three quarters of 2026.

However, to achieve greater electrification, keep a lid on prices, and reduce carbon emissions we need our grid to step up.

The National Electricity Market is one of the world’s longest interconnected power systems, stretching around 44,000 kilometres and connecting with a distribution network spanning 764,000 km.

However, it lacks connection between states and from new generation heavy regions.

It’s estimated that only 5-10% of total generation in the NEM is traded across state borders each year. This means network faults, demand spikes or generation shortfalls can leave states vulnerable to higher prices or reliability concerns.

AEMO has now forecast that more than 6,000 km of new electricity transmission lines will be required across the country by 2050 – a 14 percent expansion. It has highlighted 20 critical projects that are required – eight of those are currently underway.

About 40% of the additional length is needed to strengthen the connection between states, adding reliability and stability to electricity supply across the NEM.

The other 60% connects new capacity in state based Renewable Energy Zones to energy-intensive industries in regional hubs, or demand centres in big cities.

A more connected grid means less curtailment and more sharing of existing renewable generation. It means we won’t have to over-build local generation.

A modern and more connected electricity grid also comes with new grid forming capabilities, which adds system strength and builds greater resilience.

So this grid expansion in Australia is not just critical to meeting the COP31 35 by 35 electrification target, it’s also key to realising energy security, affordability and sustainability benefits for the country.