Australia's National Electricity Market (NEM) and power generators are being hobbled by policy and pricing limitations, a major study of the sector says.

An independent report by industry analysts Global-Roam and Greenview Strategic Consulting has found the “obsessive focus on fuel types” and an “us and them schism” has led to a tussle between fossil fuels and renewable energy.

The experts say this poses significant risks to the successful transition to a modern energy market.

The new Generator Report Card covers 20 years of the NEM and every generator that supplies the market.

At its starting point, the study saw 75 per cent of the “bulk” electricity grid in 2018 coming from the combustion of coal.

“Despite the Mandatory Renewable Energy Target [MRET] commencing 18 years ago, the NEM has moved from approximately 85 per cent [coal] in 2007 to its current level in a much slower manner than many people wish to see,” the report said.

“The root cause of the increasing polarisation of the energy debate has been the structure of the incentives put in place by various governments over the past 20 years leading to a degradation of holistic systems thinking.”