30 Sep 2026
We recently spent five minutes with Katy Dean, GBCA’s Senior Policy Adviser, about the Electrify Australia campaign. Katy shares her policy perspective on how the campaign builds on the traction made by Every Building Counts and the opportunity to strengthen established programs like NABERS, boosting transparency through disclosures and how Australia’s efforts connect with the growing global push for electrification.
1. What can you tell us about Electrify Australia’s key policy priorities?
The Electrify Australia campaign launched this month advocating for a national effort to accelerate electrification. There’s no doubt that Australia's energy future is electric, which means we need to electrify our whole economy from farms and factories to freight and family homes. For commercial buildings, the campaign calls for:
More details are available about commercial buildings, households and the campaign.
2. How does this campaign build on Every Building Counts and GBCA’s ongoing advocacy for electrification?
Electrification is a core element of the Green Star rating system and one of the key pillars of GBCA’s policy platform, Every Building Counts. In Every Building Counts and in our ongoing advocacy we ask federal, state, territory and local governments to implement policies and initiatives that would accelerate the electrification and decarbonisation of Australia’s built environment.
For example, in Every Building Counts, we advocated for the expansion of the CBD Program, which was delivered last year as the CBD Program Policy Roadmap. We also called for government to lead with their own assets, which was delivered as part of the the Net Zero in Government Operations Strategy. The Electrify Australia campaign builds on this progress, identifying that some elements of the CBD Roadmap could be implemented faster, and that government leadership on all-electric new buildings can extend to their existing assets. Key policy asks in Electrify Australia also amplify recommendations in Every Building Counts for government support tailored to those that face the highest barriers to electrification, such as lower-income and vulnerable households and mid-tier commercial building owners.
3. How can established programs like NABERS adapt to include electrification?
The NABERS Energy rating tool has helped buildings deliver huge savings in energy and emissions. The Renewable Energy Indicator (REI) is included on the NABERS certificate for every NABERS Energy rating. It displays the proportion of the building’s energy that comes from on-site renewable energy generated and off-site renewable energy procured. Updating the REI to state whether a building is all-electric provides even greater transparency to the market and will help to drive electrification, especially when coupled with mandatory disclosure.
4. What role could mandatory disclosures play in accelerating electrification, and what could be reported on?
Expanding the CBD Program means we will see mandatory energy performance disclosure across a broader range of building types. We also want to see a clear pathway to setting minimum energy performance standards for buildings – including full electrification. Integrating the NABERS Renewable Energy Indicator (REI) into disclosure requirements, alongside phased minimum standards, would reward high-performing buildings, lift the rest, and give investors and tenants the transparency and certainty to back the switch.
The Home Energy Rating, something GBCA has advocated for and worked alongside government for several years, is an important step on the journey towards energy performance ratings for homes.
5. Electrify Australia focuses on specific actions for the Australian economy, what is happening globally?
Electrify Now is a global campaign which was launched in June with a goal to quadruple the current global rate of electrification of around 21% of final energy consumption to 35% by 2035. This reflects the electrification goal announced by the COP31 Presidency as part of its Global Climate Action Agenda for COP31 in November.
In the lead-up to COP31, Türkiye and Australia also asked the International Energy Agency to develop a landmark report which announces the world is entering a new Age of Electricity. It provides a clear picture of how far and how fast electrification can advance across sectors and regions, and what it means for energy security, affordability and emissions. While the rate of electrification is relatively high in buildings compared with other sectors, there is still plenty of potential to be seized.