New figures show Australians bought a record 85,000 home batteries in the first half of 2025. That’s almost three times more than the year before, and nearly fivefold growth since 2022.

Eventually, those batteries will need to be reused or recycled. What happens then? The rules we create today will shape whether that’s affordable or easily available for householders.

My research – prepared for the federal Treasury at the request of the Australian and New Zealand governments – shows how both countries can reduce regulatory barriers to the net-zero transition.

For example, my consultation with industry revealed that moving a home or car battery from Melbourne to Perth can require multiple permits. This makes transporting batteries across different Australian states needlessly costly.

Unless this is addressed, battery recycling and repurposing markets will be smaller in some places than necessary. This drives up prices and reduces consumer choice.

So how do Australia and New Zealand compare on our current approaches to regulatory standards? And what three reforms do we need to deliver practical changes across the two countries, such as rolling out EV chargers that work with all electric cars,........

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