Consumer goods giant Unilever says it will run its Australian manufacturing plants entirely on clean energy within two years, with the country having passed a "tipping point" where going green is no longer a financial disadvantage.

The $US163 billion ($212 billion) Anglo-Dutch behemoth's Australian and New Zealand chief executive Clive Stiff said government policy uncertainty had made the jump to renewables too risky, but that the tide had turned as energy companies started closing coal-powered plants and moving into renewables.

Unilever Australian and NZ CEO Clive Stiff. Credit:Christopher Pearce

"As we now have a little bit more clarity of where we’re going with the National Energy Guarantee, then it allows us to make some longer-term commitments," Mr Stiff told Fairfax Media.

Unilever, which owns brands such as Dove, Lynx, Continental, Lipton and Streets ice cream and employs 1300 people in Australia and New Zealand, already has 109 of its manufacturing plants around the world running on clean energy.