Senior government and opposition figures will meet in Melbourne on Friday with an eye to ending the 18-month stand-off over Australia's renewable energy target.
Labor said this week it was prepared to compromise by agreeing to a target of 33,000 gigagwatt hours of annual renewable energy production by 2020 and hopes Environment Minister Greg Hunt and Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane will bring cabinet sign-off for that figure or higher.
Labor's environment spokesman Mark Butler said on Thursday: "We're hoping the government will come tomorrow with a position that's about protecting the renewable energy industry, not about Tony Abbott's political agenda."
"As we have always done, Labor will participate constructively in these discussions, but will stick to our main principles of ensuring growth in the renewable energy industry and protecting Australian jobs," Mr Butler said.
"It's up to the government to come to the table with the same principles."
The two parties have been deadlocked since the government launched its Warburton review last year of the bipartisan renewable energy target, which had been set at 41,000 gigawatt hours by 2020.
The government's first offer was a so-called "true 20 per cent" figure of about 26,000 gigawatt hours, while Labor called for a number in the mid to high-thirty thousands.
Last month, renewables peak body the Clean Energy Council put forward a compromise figure of 33,500 which Labor said it would accept, but the government rejected.
The council's chief executive Kane Thornton said on Thursday: "We are hopeful that the government will meet with Labor having recognised the need for compromise to end this damaging political deadlock, and aiming to return bipartisan support to renewable energy in Australia."
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told ABC Radio National this week: "We will work towards a deal. We've said 33,500, if it's the last issue on the table and the government wants to save face by saying 33,000 gigawatt hours as opposed to 33,500, OK."
"This game has gone on too long, the government is killing the renewable energy industry."
Investment in renewable energy in Australia dived by 88 per cent in 2014 after the government launched its review of the target.
If a deal at 33,000 is reached it will not please everyone in the industry.
The Australian Solar Council says such a figure would advantage the wind industry, which was ready to immediately begin new projects.
Chief executive John Grimes said a boom in large scale solar was more likely from the years 2017 onwards – by which point a target of 33,000 would have been reached.
"We feel very strongly that the government has forced this onto the industry and the opposition," he said.
"A deal at 33,000 won't deliver any outcomes for big solar in Australia."
