NSW Net Zero Planning Grant round 2: how to apply

Read time: 9 minutes

By Afonso Firmo, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, NetNada — updated 15 September 2026

Round 2 of the NSW Net Zero Planning Grant is open. Eligible NSW businesses can claim up to $25,000, covering up to 50 per cent of the cost of net zero planning work delivered by an external specialist consultant. The pool is $2 million. Applications opened 1 September 2026 and close at 5 pm AEDT on 30 November 2026, or earlier if the money runs out. Assessment is non-competitive and first-come, first-served. Round 1 is closed — 46 organisations were funded.

What is the NSW Net Zero Planning Grant?

The Net Zero Planning Grant is a co-funded grant run by NSW DCCEEW. It pays part of the cost of hiring an external consultant to work out where your business sits on its net zero journey and then do the planning work you’re missing — a greenhouse gas inventory, a climate risk and opportunity assessment, emissions reduction targets, a net zero action plan, or a governance structure.

It is part of the Business Decarbonisation Program, a $22 million NSW initiative. It exists because NSW has legislated targets: a 50 per cent cut on 2005 levels by 2030, 70 per cent by 2035, and net zero by 2050. Government can’t hit those numbers without the mid-market moving, and most mid-market businesses stall at the same point — they know they should have a plan, they don’t have the internal capacity to build one, and the consulting quote comes back at $40,000 to $60,000.

Two things make this grant different from most government funding:

1. It is non-competitive. You are not ranked against other applicants. If you meet the eligibility and assessment criteria, you are recommended for funding. That means speed matters more than polish.
2. The work must be done by an external specialist consultant. You cannot claim your own team’s time. The money goes to the consultant, and you claim back half of the invoice.

Every funded project runs against the Net Zero Business Guide, a 76-page document published by NSW DCCEEW that pulls national and international net zero frameworks into one structure of nine elements: strategy, governance, people and capability, data, targets, action plan, finance, stakeholder engagement, and reporting.

Round 1 opened in January 2025 and is now closed

Round 1 launched in January 2025, with applications open from 29 January to 2 May 2025. It offered up to $30,000 per business at 75 per cent co-funding, out of a $1.5 million pool, split into Milestone 1 (up to $4,000) and Milestone 2 (up to $26,000).

Forty-six organisations were awarded funding across manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, hospitality, retail and other sectors (NSW DCCEEW, round 2 funding guidelines, September 2026). Individual awards on the NSW Government recipients list ran from $4,000 to $30,000.

If you were funded in round 1, you and your related entities are not eligible for round 2. The grant is one per business, across all rounds.

What changed between round 1 and round 2

Source: NSW DCCEEW round 1 and round 2 funding guidelines, as of 15 September 2026.

Two eligibility changes also matter. Including all purchased fuels in the energy spend test brings some transport-heavy businesses over the threshold who missed out last time. And Group 1 reporting entities — those required to prepare a sustainability report under section 292A of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) — are now shut out, because they already have a mandatory obligation this grant was never meant to subsidise.

Who can apply for round 2

To be eligible, your business must:

1. Have an Australian Business Number (ABN) and be registered for GST.
2. Have a NSW site address and business operations in NSW.
3. Spend at least $200,000 a year on energy bills at a single NSW site, or $500,000 a year across multiple NSW sites. This includes all purchased fuels.
4. Provide energy bills as proof, no more than two years old at the date you submit.

You are ineligible if you:

• Received, or will receive, Net Zero Planning Grant funding in this or any previous round — including through a related entity.
• Are receiving other NSW Government funding for the same activities.
• Are a Commonwealth, state or local government entity.
• Are a Safeguard facility under the Australian Government’s Safeguard Mechanism (broadly, facilities emitting over 100,000 tonnes CO₂-e a year).
• Are a Group 1 reporting entity required to prepare a sustainability report under section 292A of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

Trusts can apply but must provide evidence of the trustee’s power to apply and to enter the funding deed.

Check your eligibility in 30 seconds

Tick every statement that is true of your business. Nothing is sent anywhere — the result is worked out in your browser.

This checklist covers the eligibility criteria only. Applications are also assessed against pass/fail objectives, quality and risk criteria, so meeting all four is the start of the conversation, not a guarantee.

What the funding covers, milestone by milestone

Milestone 1 — net zero planning. Up to $2,000, 50 per cent of costs, six weeks.

Your consultant reads the Net Zero Business Guide, runs one or more engagement sessions with your team, and completes a net zero readiness assessment in the NSW net zero planning tool across all nine elements. A NSW representative must be invited to the session and may attend. The output is a Milestone 1 report on the NSW template, which sets out the specific actions you will deliver in Milestone 2.

Milestone 2 — net zero implementation. Up to $23,000, 50 per cent of costs, 18 weeks.

Your consultant delivers the actions chosen in Milestone 1. Each action must cover the full scope of at least one key action of the Guide, be built to a recognised framework such as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol or the Science Based Targets initiative, and relate to your NSW operations only. At the end, the consultant re-runs the readiness assessment on the elements you worked on. At week 8, NSW may ask for a progress report.

Typical Milestone 2 deliverables include a greenhouse gas inventory covering Scope 1, 2 and 3; a climate risk and opportunity assessment; documented net zero targets; a long-, mid- and short-term net zero action plan; a net zero financial plan; a stakeholder engagement plan; or a voluntary disclosure report.

The worked examples in the round 2 guidelines show how the money lands in practice: an agriculture business applying for $22,000 received $1,760 at Milestone 1 and $20,240 at Milestone 2; a manufacturer applying for $25,000 received the full $2,000 and $23,000.

What the grant will not pay for

The grant does not fund:

• Any cost incurred or deposit paid before the funding deed is executed (for Milestone 2, before you are notified that Milestone 1 is complete).
• Internal project management and labour costs.
• Hours or rates above prevailing market rates.
• Carbon offsets.
• Capital expenditure, equipment or technology assessments.
• Actions required for mandatory reporting under the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting (NGER) Scheme.
• External training, certification fees, auditing, verification and validation fees.
• Existing ongoing activities, including voluntary reporting you already do.
• Work substantially similar to something you already contracted before your application date. NSW can ask for your existing consultant contracts as evidence.

The timing rule catches people every year. If you sign a consultant and start work while your application is being assessed, that spend is not claimable.

The application process, step by step

1. Read the funding guidelines in full. They are the authority on everything in this article.
2. Confirm the energy spend test with your latest bills. If your annual cost sits close to $200,000 or $500,000, expect NSW to ask for additional bills.
3. Line up a specialist consultant for Milestone 1, or be ready to engage one immediately after the deed is signed. Including their details in the application saves weeks.
4. Complete and submit the application through the NSW grant management system (SmartyGrants). You get an email confirmation with an application number.
5. Wait for assessment — pass/fail against objectives, quality and risk. NSW may request more information, and you have 5 business days to respond or the application stops.
6. Receive the outcome within 20 business days of submitting.
7. Sign the funding deed within 20 business days. No changes to the deed are considered. Complete the pre-implementation survey.
8. Deliver Milestone 1 within 6 weeks, submit the report and the consultant’s itemised invoice. Review takes up to 30 business days.
9. Deliver Milestone 2 within 18 weeks of the Milestone 1 completion notice, submit the report, the action deliverables and evidence, the invoice, and the post-implementation survey.

Questions go to energyefficiency.program@environment.nsw.gov.au.

How to choose a specialist consultant

NSW leaves the choice to you and sets three criteria: relevant qualifications, relevant experience with examples of past work, and capacity to deliver on time. Qualifications can sit in net zero, carbon accounting, sustainability, ESG, environmental engineering, renewable energy and energy efficiency.

Two things the guidelines say quietly that are worth saying loudly:

• Milestone 1 and Milestone 2 need different depth. Milestone 1 rewards broad knowledge across all nine elements of the Guide. Milestone 2 rewards deep expertise in the one or two elements you chose. You may need more than one consultant.
• Capacity is a real criterion. Six weeks for Milestone 1 and 18 weeks for Milestone 2 are hard deadlines, and variation requests to extend them are granted only in exceptional circumstances.

Any conflict of interest between you and your consultant must be declared to NSW in writing.

What round 1 recipients did with the money

NSW has published three round 1 outcomes.

Lyka — pet food manufacturing. The project delivered a greenhouse gas inventory built to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, a climate risk and opportunity assessment consistent with the Australian Sustainability Reporting Standards (ASRS), emissions reduction targets following the Science Based Targets initiative, and a net zero action plan.

“We use the Net Zero guide to identify gaps in our Net Zero Strategy. This guide aims to demystify the Net Zero planning process and allows for organisations to take meaningful climate action… The guide also provides strategic clarity and has helped Lyka create clear objectives and measures towards our Net Zero Strategy and action plan across nine different pillars.”

— Corey Won, Lyka (NSW DCCEEW Net Zero Planning Grant success stories, 2026)

Delta Laboratories — cosmetics manufacturing. Delta worked across all nine elements of the Guide, including action planning, strategy, governance, people and capability, and finance.

“One of the key benefits for Delta was having a common reference point. The Net Zero Business Guide provided a structural framework that helped us take a step back and look at Net Zero planning holistically… It confirmed where we were already progressing and highlighted areas we needed to strengthen. It helped connect existing initiatives such as solar, water management, energy efficiency into broader Net Zero pathways rather than treating them as isolated sustainability projects.”

— Jayanth Das, Delta Laboratories (NSW DCCEEW Net Zero Planning Grant success stories, 2026)

Alsco Uniforms — commercial laundry. Alsco used round 1 for net zero action planning at its Campbelltown facility, producing an emissions reduction action plan and a preferred pathway to net zero to guide future investment decisions.

Five things that slow applications down

NetNada supported 6 NSW companies on round 1 applications and deliveries. These are the delays we saw most often — we walk through each one in the round 2 webinar on 28 September:

1. Energy bills that don’t prove the threshold. A single bill showing a month’s usage does not demonstrate $200,000 a year. Pull 12 months, and pull fuel cards and gas accounts too now that all purchased fuels count.
2. Starting consultant work before the deed is signed. Enthusiasm costs you the claim.
3. Leaving the consultant decision until after approval. The six-week Milestone 1 clock starts at deed commencement, not at consultant engagement.
4. Choosing Milestone 2 actions that are too broad. Actions must cover the full scope of at least one key action of the Guide. Half of three elements will fail; all of one will pass.
5. Forgetting the NSW operations boundary. If you operate in NSW and Victoria, only the NSW portion is fundable, and any activity that crosses over needs to be carved out in the Milestone 1 report.

How NetNada can help

We helped six businesses secure this grant in round 1, so we know where the applications stick and how the assessors read them.

We do the application for you at no cost. We check eligibility against your energy bills, write and submit the application, and you pay nothing unless the grant is approved. If it’s approved, we act as your specialist consultant for both milestones — readiness assessment and Milestone 1 report, then the inventory, climate risk assessment, targets or action plan you chose for Milestone 2, run on NetNada’s carbon accounting platform so the data stays yours after the project closes.

If you spend more than $200,000 a year on energy at a NSW site, the fastest thing you can do this week is send us 12 months of energy bills and let us tell you whether you’re eligible. The round closes 30 November 2026, or earlier if the $2 million runs out — and with rolling assessment, earlier is a real risk.

Check your eligibility with NetNada

Or come to the free 30-minute session first: NSW Net Zero Planning Grant: how to access $25,000 before 30 November, Monday 28 September 2026 at 12:30pm AEST.

Figures in this article are taken from the NSW DCCEEW Net Zero Planning Grant funding guidelines, Round 2 (September 2026) and the NSW Government grant pages, as of 15 September 2026. Grant terms change — read the current funding guidelines before you apply. Full details and the application portal: Net Zero Planning Grant page on energy.nsw.gov.au.