RET (Renewable Energy Target)

Written and checked by the Energy Merchants desk · Reviewed 2 October 2026

RET stands for Renewable Energy Target. It is the federal scheme, legislated in 2001 and expanded in 2009 and 2015, that makes the electricity industry pay for renewable generation. It works by creating certificates and then forcing the big buyers of electricity to purchase them.

The scheme has two halves.

• The Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) creates STCs for rooftop solar, solar hot water, heat pumps and, since July 2025, eligible home batteries. See SRES definition.
• The Large-scale Renewable Energy Target (LRET) creates LGCs for accredited power stations.

The Clean Energy Regulator (CER) administers both. Liable entities, mostly electricity retailers, must surrender enough certificates each year to cover their obligation, which is what keeps demand alive.

In practice

Installers meet the RET as a number on a quote. The small-scale half is why a household can install a 6.6 kW system and have thousands of dollars removed from the invoice at signing. The money comes from the market, through retailers’ compliance, not directly from taxpayers.

The scheme is not permanent for small solar. The deeming period shortens each year, and the scheme ends on 31 December 2030. That is why STC counts for the same system fall year on year. Read the 2027 deeming change for what happens in January.

Common confusion

The RET is often called “the renewable energy target” as though it were a single national emissions target. Strictly it is a certificate scheme, not a target for total renewables in the grid. State targets, such as those that sit alongside Victorian and NSW programs, are separate again.

People also mistake the RET for the state certificate schemes. VEECs (Victoria) and ESCs and PRCs (NSW) come from state schemes. They are not part of the RET.

For the installer-side process, see STC trading. The full vocabulary is in the certificate trading glossary.