A Clean Energy Target recommended by Australia's Chief Scientist will not be adopted, with the Federal Government instead proposing a new plan to bring down electricity prices.

Key points: The plan will be put to the Coalition party room today

The plan will be put to the Coalition party room today It would require three years' notice of closing a power station

It would require three years' notice of closing a power station Liberal backbencher Craig Kelly also suggested the Government delay action on reaching the Paris climate targets until closer to 2030

The details have not officially been released, but the ABC understands Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull will argue his policy will lower electricity bills more than a Clean Energy Target (CET), while meeting Australia's Paris climate change commitments.

It is understood Cabinet last night also agreed to force retailers to guarantee a certain amount of so-called dispatchable power that can be switched on and off on demand, to avoid outages.

The plan will be put to the Coalition party room today and is likely to appeal to a group of backbenchers who favour coal-fired power and had opposed a CET from the outset.

The CET would have mandated a certain percentage of power be generated from gas and renewable energy, but some backbenchers did not like the idea.

The idea was one of 50 recommendations proposed by Chief Scientist Alan Finkel in his review of the energy sector.

Dumping CET a win for Abbott: Labor

Tony Abbott argued a CET was effectively a "tax on coal", and Labor has now declared dumping it a win for the former prime minister.

"Tony Abbott has had a victory here," Opposition frontbencher Jason Clare said this morning.

"Remember Malcolm Turnbull appointed the Chief Scientist, asked him for a report said his proposal was the right one and now after Tony Abbott makes a speech about sacrificing goats in London, he is running away from that at 100 miles an hour.

"The transformation from Malcolm Turnbull to Tony Abbott now seems complete."

Malcolm Turnbull says there are "many approaches" to energy policy. ( ABC News: Matt Roberts )

Mr Clare noted Mr Turnbull's move away from his previous strong support for a Clean Energy Target and previously for an emissions trading scheme.

Frontbencher Angus Taylor argued the new scheme would mean the Government could meet its commitments to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris climate agreement.

"I am absolutely confident that we can meet our international obligations," Mr Taylor said.

He highlighted the affordability aspect of the plan.

"Look frankly if this is not addressed and addressed in a pragmatic way that delivers outcomes then Australian businesses will shed jobs and Australian households will struggle with cost of living in a way they haven't in the past," Mr Taylor said.

Concerns new plan relies on ageing coal-fired power stations

Kane Thornton, from the Clean Energy Council, said it was difficult to see how this plan could achieve the emissions reductions required by Australia's international obligations.

He said it seemed to assume that old coal-fired power stations would keep operating for longer.

But Mr Thornton warned that might not be possible, saying that those plants were becoming unreliable because of their age.

"If we are keeping old generation in the market, if we are slowing down the deployment of renewables, then it is difficult to see how we achieve the sort of emission reductions that we need to deliver on our Paris commitments," he told RN.

"Obviously we are disappointed that the Clean Energy Target has been dropped it had very broad and strong support right across the business and energy sector."

Mr Thornton warned it might not mean an end to the long-running stand-off over energy policy.

"This might reflect just another chapter in the energy policy wars that we have endured over the last decade," he said.

Liberal backbencher Craig Kelly, who in July said renewable energy was killing people, said he was pleased with Cabinet's plan for more dispatchable, switch-on/switch-off power.

"The problem we've had in the past is we have hot days, the demand for electricity spikes, and we haven't had enough power that you can turn on with a switch to get that," Mr Kelly told AM.

"The problem with solar and wind, for as wonderful technologies that they are, when there's no wind you get no electricity generation and as soon as the sun sets, you also get zero electricity generation as well.

"So as good as technologies as they are, you've got to have them backed up in some way, and that's either got to be a coal-fired power station, a gas generator or some form of battery."

MP suggests Paris target delay

Mr Kelly has also suggested the Government delay action on reaching the Paris climate targets until closer to 2030.

"We know that a cost of a lot of this technology is becoming cheaper every year, therefore if we have a target in 2030, we're far better to adopt those new technologies and to be paying for them in 2025, 2026, 2027, rather than be paying for them early, so you can actually backload into the next decade to achieve your Paris targets," he said.

Asked whether Dr Finkel should feel his work had been disregarded, Mr Kelly said "not at all".

"The Finkel Report contained 50 recommendations, now if we've recommended 49, that's a 98 per cent strike rate," he said.

"I think there's very few reports made to Government or to COAG that have actually had 98 per cent of their recommendations adopted, so I think he can be pretty happy if he gets 49 out of 50."