A Senate inquiry has been told around 1,000 wind turbines will need to be built to meet the new Renewable Energy Target figure of 33,000 gigawatt hours.

The Government and opposition managed to make a deal on the RET this week, cutting it from its original 41,000 GwH figure to 33,000.

The Coalition agreed not to proceed with biennial reviews of the target, which had been a major sticking point.

The Federal Government still wants burning of native timber to be classified as a renewable energy source.

Environmentalists say that wood-burning still an emissions-heavy method of getting power, and investing in deforestation to meet the RET would see money siphoned away from more legitimate forms of green energy.

The government-funded clean energy regulator has the job of monitoring progress on the RET, and says most of the energy to meet the goal will come from wind turbines.

That would be equal to about 50 per cent of Australia’s existing wind turbine capacity.

The large number to be built in just five years caused LNP senator Matt Canavan to wonder if it was possible.

“So we have to build 1,000 in five years. Is that achievable?” he asked the head of the regulator, Chloe Monroe, at a Senate inquiry on Tuesday.

“It’s possible, based on the known approved projects, for it to be reached,” Monroe answered.

“There are a number of projects which are, in the vernacular, shovel-ready.”

“I’m deeply sceptical,” Senator Canavan replied.

“It appears that there are sufficient sites and projects for it to be achieved,” Monroe said.