On Friday, 28 March 2025 the government assumed a Caretaker role. Some consultations have been deactivated until further notice, in accordance with the Guidance on Caretaker Conventions.

Overview

We are consulting on options to reform the Safeguard Mechanism to help industry reduce emissions in line with Australia’s climate targets. This will strengthen Australia’s competitiveness in a decarbonising global economy.

The Safeguard Mechanism requires Australia’s largest greenhouse gas emitters to keep their net emissions below an emissions limit (a baseline). The Australian Government proposes:

  • gradually reducing baselines to help Australia reach net zero emissions by 2050

  • introducing credits for facilities that emit less than their baseline

  • providing tailored treatment to emissions-intensive, trade-exposed (EITE) facilities so businesses are not disadvantaged compared to international competitors and emissions do not increase overseas.

We are seeking feedback on the consultation paper, which outlines options for these reforms in more detail.

Consultation documents

If you have difficulty accessing these documents, please contact us.

Reforming the Safeguard Mechanism: online information session

In conjunction with the Safeguard Reform Consultation paper, the Safeguard Team presented an online information session on Wednesday 31 August as an opportunity for stakeholders to:

  • learn more about the proposed reforms  

  • help prepare responses to the consultation.

The session discussed the main themes in the consultation paper, and included time for Q&A.

The session was recorded, and can be accessed and viewed using the link below.

View the information session recording.

Read more

Timeline

Contact
Safeguard Mechanism Taskforce
Safeguard.Mechanism@industry.gov.au