The Australia-Canada Clean Energy Partnership

The Australia-Canada Clean Energy Partnership between
The Government of Australia as represented by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water and The Department of Natural Resources of Canada

As signed March 5, 2026

INTRODUCTION

Australia and Canada share a commitment to ambitious action to decarbonise their respective economies and maximise the economic opportunities presented by the transition to clean energy. The Government of Australia as represented by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) and the Department of Natural Resources of Canada (NRCan), hereinafter referred to as the “Participants,” recognise climate change as a defining global challenge and are committed to contributing to the global response, consistent with the objectives of the Paris Agreement goals. The Participants will continue to engage in and support ongoing work under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement, including through Australia’s role as President of Negotiations at the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31).

The Participants resolve to strengthen their bilateral cooperation across clean energy and decarbonisation. The Participants will focus on supporting clean energy technology development at scale and drive two-way trade and investment where feasible. This bilateral work will complement the Participants’ ongoing multilateral cooperation, including in the G20, the International Energy Agency, in implementation of the UNFCCC and Paris Agreement, and as part of the Clean Energy Ministerial, Mission Innovation, and in NRCan’s Equal by 30 campaign.

The Participants decide to establish the Australia-Canada Clean Energy Partnership (hereinafter “the Partnership”) to provide a framework for closer bilateral cooperation between them as follows:

PARAGRAPH 1: AREAS OF COOPERATION

  1. The Participants identify five pillars of collaboration and discussion:
    1. Trade, Investment, Standards and Supply Chains – Facilitating greater trade and investment in the clean energy industries of Australia and Canada, including business-to-business engagement; co-investment opportunities; voluntary and market-based natural gas emissions reduction initiatives, including measuring, monitoring, reporting and verification to advance common approaches to accounting; the development of international hydrogen standards, and the promotion of environment, social and governance (ESG) practices in clean energy supply chains.
    2. Grid Modernisation and Resilience – Cooperating on standardised training and simulation-based learning for emergency response, grid management, and variable renewable energy integration to support renewables roll-out efforts, as well as exchanges between scientific institutes and grid-operator secondments to support knowledge exchange.
    3. Energy and Hard-to Abate Sectors – Cooperating on both countries’ efforts to decarbonise energy systems and hard to abate sectors on a path to net-zero, including through the development and uptake of low-carbon liquid fuels (LCLFs), sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs), and carbon dioxide removal (CDR).
    4. Indigenous Engagement – Sharing a commitment to the inclusion and economic participation of Indigenous peoples in the clean energy transition. Cooperation could support the outcomes and efforts of Australia’s First Nations Clean Energy Strategy and NRCan’s engagement with Indigenous stakeholders in clean energy projects, through business roundtables on local employment agreements, and broader engagement processes on clean energy with Indigenous peoples.
    5. Climate Change Adaptation – Cooperation on climate adaptation strategies to better prepare for the increasing intensity and frequency of climate-related risks, with a focus on energy systems. These include extreme heat, floods, and wildfires, which are becoming more severe and widespread across both Australia and Canada.

PARAGRAPH 2: MEANS OF COOPERATION

  1. The implementation of bilateral cooperation within this Partnership could include the following means, as appropriate:
    1. Regular ministerial meetings, roundtables on practical cooperation, business-to-business engagement, or regular working-level touchpoints between portfolio agencies.
    2. Encouraging enterprises to create stronger business-to-business cooperation and develop projects and programmes to support commercial objectives.
    3. Exchanging information, expertise, technical knowledge, and best practices through visits, multilateral platforms, and/or virtual means as mutually determined by the Participants.
    4. Exploring opportunities for joint partnerships between industry.
    5. Any other means jointly decided upon by the Participants.
  2. The Participants will hold a senior officials’ meeting (virtual or in-person) within six to eight months after this Partnership enters effect to identify priority areas for cooperation for the following year. Thereafter, the Participants will seek to convene regular senior officials’ meetings to set priorities.
  3. The Participants will maintain dialogue on clean energy developments at the national and global level, including through multilateral forums and frameworks.

PARAGRAPH 3: COMMUNICATION

  1. Each Participant will appoint in writing a contact point in charge of facilitating the procedures and following up on the fields mentioned in this Partnership, and each Participant will notify the other Participant in the event of a change in the contact point.

PARAGRAPH 4: CONFIDENTIALITY

  1. The Participants will not use any information and documents exchanged between them except for the purposes for which they were intended according to this Partnership and will not disclose them to a third party without prior written consent of the Participant who provided them, subject to applicable laws and regulations. The Participants understand that proprietary information will remain the property of the providing Participant.

PARAGRAPH 5: FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS

  1. Each Participant will bear the financial costs resulting from the implementation of its respective activities based on this Partnership, unless the Participants jointly decide otherwise.

PARAGRAPH 6: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

  1. If any intellectual property matters are expected to arise from the application of this Partnership, the Participants will address them in separate instruments. These instruments could include non-disclosure arrangements, licensing arrangements, collaborative research arrangements, or other contracts.

PARAGRAPH 7: DIFFERENCES OF INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION

  1. Any differences arising regarding the interpretation or application of this Partnership will be resolved amicably through the diplomatic channels between the Participants, and will not be referred to any court, tribunal or any other entity for settlement.

PARAGRAPH 8: STATUS

  1. This Partnership is not legally binding and does not give rise to any rights or obligations under domestic or international law. This Partnership will not affect the Participants’ obligations derived from any international treaties and agreements to which their respective countries are a party.

PARAGRAPH 9: FINAL DISPOSITIONS

  1. This Partnership will come into effect on the date of its signature.
  2. Each Participant may end cooperation under this Partnership at any time, informing the other Participant in writing of its intention to end cooperation at least six months prior.
  3. This Partnership may be amended at any time by mutual written consent of both Participants.
 
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