Media Release
28 September 2025
Interview Transcript:
Luke Grant: Obviously, we’ve had the Federal Government set itself the ambitious 2035 emissions reduction target. Most of the talk in this space is usually about wind and solar and how that’s going to save everyone and everything. But I’ve often thought – and this isn’t new – is there a way we can do what we’re doing now, but better?
Because what we do now has, for a long time, served us well. If we invested in making coal cleaner – not absolute zero, but cleaner than it is now – there must be a way of doing things better. And it wouldn’t surprise you to know that in countries around the world, that’s exactly what many of them are doing.
Luke Grant: Here though, it feels like a bit of an afterthought. In fact, if you dare talk about carbon capture and storage, you get weird looks: that doesn’t work.
I want to talk about this with someone I saw just a week ago discuss this very issue. He’s the CEO of Low Emission Technology Australia – which smartly becomes LETA. His name is Mark McCallum. He’s on the line. G’day, Mark, thanks for your time.
Mark McCallum: Hi Luke, thanks for having me.
Luke Grant: Not at all. The technologies we’re talking about here don’t necessarily involve a solar panel or a turbine. They involve other technologies, which is evidence that there’s more than one potential solution. But they don’t get the airtime they should. So tell me, what are they doing around the world that we could be doing here?
Mark McCallum: As you said, a lot of the debate around emissions and targets has focused on electricity and how we generate it cleanly, affordably and reliably. But electricity is only about a third of Australia’s emissions. The other two-thirds aren’t getting the focus they should.
That’s where Low Emission Technology Australia comes in. We invest in technologies that will help mining, manufacturing, steel, cement, and power generation reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. We’re supporting a range of technologies here in Australia and also looking at what’s being done around the world.
Luke Grant: Because you often hear – we heard it around small modular nuclear reactors, which may well be a thing – but the opponents say, ‘Show me one working now.’ Is this all carbon capture, and is it happening now?
Mark McCallum: It’s happening right now here in Australia. At Moomba, in the gas fields run by Santos, and at Barrow Island off the Northwest Shelf, with a big project run by Chevron. They’re stripping out CO₂, purifying it, and either storing it permanently or using it for other purposes.
And that’s just two projects in Australia. Worldwide, there are about 50 more already in operation, capturing the equivalent of around 10% of Australia’s annual emissions. Countries like Japan, Korea, the UK, and the US are spending billions on this technology to help their heavy industries cut pollution and emissions.
Luke Grant: Mark, for as long as a decade ago I thought: we have relatively cleaner coal here compared to some of the dirtier stuff burned around the world. If we sell it, why not also get as deep as we can into technologies that allow us to sell it with a clear conscience? We could say, “This isn’t the old stuff. Use it with these technologies and it’s cleaner.” What’s wrong with that thinking?
Mark McCallum: That’s exactly what we’re doing at LETA with our partners in Japan, Korea, and the US. We’re working with them to reduce emissions from steelmaking and cement, and to develop new clean fuels like hydrogen – even turning Australian coal into those fuels.
We’re playing to Australia’s strengths: we’re good at mining, manufacturing, and exporting resources. These countries rely on us to support their industries, and in doing so, we’re supporting ours too.
Luke Grant: But mate, it seems unless it’s a solar panel or a wind turbine, you’re not just second place, you’re a hundredth. Doesn’t government – Labor or Liberal – owe it to all of us to look at things beyond just wind and solar?
Mark McCallum: That’s where the new targets come in. Whether it’s 43%, 62%, or 70%, governments can only meet them with this technology. Every expert says that without it, hitting the targets will take longer, cost more, or be impossible. If you don’t address emissions from two-thirds of the economy, how do you get to net zero by 2050? Either industries invest in these technologies, or they stop operating.
Luke Grant: Is stripping CO₂ out of emissions expensive?
Mark McCallum: It’s getting cheaper, just like every technology improves with each generation. Think about iPhones: better batteries, more efficient, lighter. The same is true for carbon capture. The costs today are much lower than they were a decade ago.
Luke Grant: If government had been more proactive earlier, supporting businesses that turn emissions into products — like building bricks — who knows where we’d be now. We could’ve been a world leader. But instead, we’ve missed the boat.
Mark McCallum: We’re making steps in the right direction, but compared to the billions being invested overseas, Australia is still only talking millions. The UK is spending £22 billion to help heavy industries reduce emissions and clean up pollution. That’s the kind of scale we need to look at.
Luke Grant: Mark McCallum, thanks so much for your time.
Mark McCallum: Thanks Luke, good to talk.
Luke Grant: He’s the CEO of Low Emission Technology Australia. It’s a strange idea, isn’t it? We’ve got the resources here, so let’s find a way to use them better. If it’s not possible, fine, but at least let’s have a go. Imagine if we’d started 10, 15, 20 years ago.