A message from Jens Goennemann
Recently, I was in Germany and Finland with the European Australian Business Council (EABC) delegation and a few things stood out.
The Australia-EU FTA was announced earlier this year in March after eight years of negotiations and then we have quickly moved on. The news was dominated by benefits for farmers and food makers on both sides, plus a little about resources.
The interesting and important parts have now begun. An FTA, for all its virtues, is just a piece of paper, whereas only the realisation of its purpose for the benefit of the contracting parties truly matters.
Australia has held a 2+2 Ministerial Consultation with Germany, its first since 2021 which is a sign of deepened ties that can only be great news.
Australia is eager on many clean technology fronts, for example in decarbonising iron ore, its leading export. An example of this is the $1 billion Green Iron Investment Fund.
There are 20 projects underway, though no final investment decisions yet. Germany has the demand – Thyssenkrupp signing an offtake for one of these projects. This is crucial to develop this promising but undercooked opportunity.
Another place where momentum can be built is in defence, where the two nations notably partner already on military vehicles.
The trip also reminded me of what Australia can learn (but not copy) from small Nordic countries. You can only be impressed by the example of Finland, with its population less than NSW, defending the longest NATO border with Russia.
Finland’s ingenuity can be seen via its VTT, the equivalent to CSIRO if a comparison is needed, established in the middle of WW2. Like CSIRO, its contribution to communications has changed the world, for example creating the first ever mobile phone and videophone.
VTT is an eager contributor to defence technology and nuclear safety. I believe there is something to be learned from its unapologetic focus on translating research into industrial impact across different sectors.
On a completely different note, AMGC recently opened applications for the new SME Industrial Decarbonisation Fund.
We are administering this $10 million fund which supports manufacturers seeking to reduce emissions while strengthening their competitiveness.
We believe the fastest way to reduce emissions is not through symbolism but through solutions that manufacturers willingly adopt because they make commercial as well as environmental sense.
The Fund will continue to accomplish what AMGC was established to do: advance Australian manufacturing by supporting businesses with the ambition and capability to grow. By company number, Australia’s manufacturers are overwhelmingly made up of small and medium-sized enterprises, and it is within these businesses that an enormous amount of innovation and capability is too often overlooked.
For almost a decade, AMGC has identified and supported these manufacturers, delivering an overall project success rate north of 90 per cent.
Over the years, governments have repeatedly entrusted AMGC as a proven safe pair of hands to design and manage co-investment programs that strengthen Australia’s manufacturing competitiveness.
We have delivered programs for the Commonwealth through our original co-investment activities and later the Commercialisation Fund, for the Northern Territory through the Advanced Manufacturing Ecosystem Fund, and for Western Australia through the Wind Energy Manufacturing Co-Investment Program,
The SME Industrial Decarbonisation Fund differs slightly from these earlier initiatives, but our role remains much the same. We understand manufacturing, we understand what a capable business looks like, and together we structure projects that deliver measurable commercial and environmental outcomes – for a specific company and for others to follow their example.
Both AMGC and participating manufacturers have skin in the game. Government entrusts us with public funding, and participating businesses commit at least matching cash while remaining accountable for delivering the agreed project outcomes. That shared commitment is one of the reasons AMGC’s programs consistently deliver strong results. As industry practitioners, we have developed a model that combines meaningful co-investment with robust governance and accountability.
The SME Industrial Decarbonisation Fund is focussed on manufacturers with under 200 employees in the areas of Surface Treatment, Process Steam and Metals Processing. More eligibility and other information can be seen here.