The Greens will push for a $100 million federal grant to get a solar-thermal power plant off the ground in South Australia.
The Port Augusta community has been lobbying for government support to build the plant to replace its coal-fired power stations, the last of which closed last month.
The minor party says investing in renewable energy is the best way to turn around SA's jobless rate, which is the highest in the country at 6.8 per cent.
"We have the technology, the expertise and the backing required from the private sector," SA Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said on Wednesday.
"Now we just need a commitment in black and white from the federal government."
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A solar-thermal power plant uses a series of mirrors or lenses to concentrate sunlight and heat a liquid to produce steam.
The steam is then used to drive a turbine and produce electricity.
Alinta Energy, which ran Port Augusta's power stations, last year said the solar-thermal plant was commercially unviable because of market conditions and existing technology.
