Developed through two years of consultation and modelling under the National Electricity Rules, the Integrated System Plan is the Australian Market Energy Market Operator’s national roadmap for the National Electricity Market to maintain electricity reliability and meet government policy through to 2050.

The centrepiece of the 2026 Integrated System Plan is the optimal development path, which sets out the least-cost combination of generation, storage, transmission, distribution and consumer investments to replace retiring coal power stations and support the doubling of electricity consumption.

Under the Step Change scenario, the direction of the 2026 optimal development path is consistent with previous Integrated System Plans and reflects investments already being made by consumers, industry and governments. These include renewable energy supported by storage, connected by transmission and distribution, and firmed by gas.

Key changes since the 2024 Integrated System Plan include:

At the same time, a number of projects from previous Integrated System Plans have progressed to committed and are no longer included, as the Plan is based on future investment decisions.

According to the Clean Energy Council, ageing coal plants like Callide C are becoming less reliable and will retire over the next decade. To replace them and meet rising demand, Australia needs to roughly triple its build of large-scale renewable generation and storage. That is what keeps the system reliable and keeps a lid on costs as coal leaves.

“Households are already part of the solution. Rooftop solar is set to quadruple by 2050 and home batteries are taking off. But that investment only pays off for everyone if the grid can actually use it,” said Jackie Trad, Chief Executive Officer at the Clean Energy Council.

“That’s where transmission comes in. Building the 6000 kilometres of new transmission in the plan would save consumers $30 billion.”

“The plan is clear about what to build. The job now is to build it at a pace to replace coal generation in an orderly manner. Right now, there’s a gap between projects being financed, getting built, and connecting to the grid. Closing that gap and getting transmission moving is what stands between this plan and lower, more reliable power for Australian homes and businesses.”

For the Integrated System Plan 2026, including all appendices and supporting materials, visit the AEMO website.