An Asian investor will match the federal government dollar for dollar as part of a $200 million scheme to help local renewable energy companies get started.
The commonwealth earlier this year pledged to pump $100 million into Australia's largest renewable energy venture capital fund.
Energy Minister Martin Ferguson announced today it would be managed by Southern Cross Venture Partners.
The federal government's contribution will be matched by Asian investor Softbank China Venture Capital, making available a total of $200 million to support renewable energy companies from early next year.
"While Australia has many innovative companies developing renewable energy technologies, early-stage companies with a limited operating history have found it difficult to source venture capital," Mr Ferguson told reporters.
The fund will also actively seek to further private sector funding, he added.
"They'll be working with the renewable sector to look at how they tend to issues at risk but also help fund some investments in renewable energy, try and assist research and development and innovation and in doing so, create solutions to our climate change debate," Mr Ferguson told reporters.
He said it would be up to the venture capital fund to decide what companies to give funding to.
"There is no direction. There is no suggestion they should favour one form of clean energy over another or segment the industry and decide x percentage has to be renewable or against station power or whatever," he said.
"It's about which proposals put in front of the fund managers actually stack up."
