Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt made the election announcement in Port Kembla today, alongside NSW Senate candidate David Shoebridge and Cunningham hopeful Dylan Green, saying that without rapid action to decarbonise, the Port Kembla steelworks could become a "stranded asset".

"What we desperately need is a plan so corporations, businesses and workers can make decisions that won't potentially put the region at odds with where the rest of the world is going, and end up with what may well be stranded assets in 10 years time," he said.

Read more: Next government needs to take more climate change action, Illawarra advocates say

Green steel, which is produced using hydrogen instead of coal, has been proposed as a way to make zero-emissions steel.

Pilot plants have demonstrated the technology overseas, however BlueScope has indicated that the technology is not yet commercially viable for deployment in Port Kembla.

With much of the innovation in Europe supported by governments, general manager manufacturing at BlueScope David Scott said local support would assist the steelmaker.

"We welcome any government support to help us to transition to low carbon intensity steel making," he said.

Mr Shoebridge said the fund would rapidly accelerate the deployment of these technologies, with the potential to decarbonise steel production by 2040.

"This is about bringing green steel forward hopefully by a decade."

In addition to the $500 million innovation fund, the Greens proposed a $5.6 billion Green Steel bank, which would provide finance for and investment in projects utilising green steel, such as wind turbines or transport infrastructure.

"That's the same model as the Clean Energy Finance Corporation that has helped grow industries and jobs in this country," said Mr Bandt. "Now we want to do the same with green steel."

With hydrogen made from renewable energy needed for the production of green steel, Mr Shoebridge said the federal government needed to encourage the deployment of renewables to turn the Illawarra into a hydrogen hub.

"Just imagine the scale of green hydrogen you can produce in the Illawarra if state and federal governments work together."

With Wollongong Coal planning to reopen the Wongawilli mine, Mr Bandt said it promised 'false hope' when the world was turning towards renewables.

"Reopening a coal mine in the 21st century, when the world is trying to get out of coal, is like reopening a Blockbuster video store, and hoping it'll create sustainable jobs for decades to come. It just won't."

Campaigning in the Hunter, Labor leader Anthony Albanese said no jobs would be lost as part of the opposition's plan to transition to net zero, while the Labor candidate for the seat, Dan Repacholi said the coal industry had many more years to go.

Mr Shoebridge said the choice facing the Illawarra was clear.

"The truth of the matter is the Illawarra has two choices; either plan for green steel, or plan for no steelmaking in the Illawarra."

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