This is MAINSTREAM’s second annual decarbonisation sentiment report. Where our 2024 report established the baseline – asking the profession to name what it feared, what it hoped for, and what it did not yet understand – this 2026 edition tracks what has changed, what has not, and where the most consequential gaps remain.

Decarbonisation is reshaping how asset-intensive organisations operate. This report captures the candid perspectives of Maintenance, Reliability and Asset Managers who are navigating this transition firsthand and exploring what they’re experiencing, how their teams are responding, and where the gaps between strategy and operational reality exist.
Bringing together industry sentiment with research from organisations including CSIRO, Engineers Australia and the Energy Transitions Commission, the report provides a grounded view of what decarbonisation means for the people responsible for making it happen.