Journal of Energy & Natural Resources Law (JERL)

nergy justice has evolved as a framework for understanding the justice implications of decisions across energy systems.Footnote1 Scholars have also explored how to apply environmental and human rights norms to energy systems.Footnote2 However, injustices in energy systems also tend to exacerbate energy challenges, particularly manifesting through different countries' legal, policy, and regulatory frameworks.

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The pursuit of climate action to meet net-zero targets has triggered the call for a global energy transition from fossil fuels to clean energy sources. However, this global energy transition does not entirely recognise all countries’ social, economic and technological capacities as well as emission contributions as envisaged under the Common but Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) principle, which underlies international climate policy. It is concerned more with the outcome of transitioning to clean energy than with justice in the transition process.

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Today, energy justice and energy transition are converging, particularly in Africa. This intersection is crucial for achieving sustainable development and addressing the challenges of climate change. The context of energy transitions in Africa necessitates a thorough examination of the continent's unique challenges and opportunities. Mainstreaming the justice dimension and adopting comprehensive policy frameworks that balance developmental concerns and market creation are crucial for achieving a clean energy transition and sustainable development in Africa.

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The paper discusses the trilogy framework of decarbonisation, decentralisation and democratisation and its relevance in the implementation of just energy transition agendas in rural communities of Global South countries (GSCs). It argues that just energy transition should be implemented via developing nationally independent but locally driven renewable energy projects in GSCs. To corroborate the trilogy framework, the paper discusses case studies of India’s Panchayat institutions, Nepal’s community renewable projects, and Bhutan’s hydro projects. The paper recommends that the trilogy framework be implemented in GSCs through the concept of ‘energy prosumer communities’.

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India has earmarked 56 shale gas fracking projects as part of its coal-to-gas transition plan. However, fracking poses peculiar risks to the environment and public health. This paper examines whether India’s fracking-based energy transition pathway ensures procedural justice for its citizens by evaluating its regulatory framework on three key aspects of procedural justice: information, inclusion and influence. In doing so, this paper posits that procedural rights are considered part of constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights in India. To address the procedural justice issues, this paper argues that the Indian government should conduct scientific inquiries into the environmental impact of the proposed fracking projects. Additionally, the paper suggests establishing communication channels to inform local communities about fracking-related risks through decentralised regulatory mechanisms, creating regulatory structures to involve various stakeholders in decision-making, and analysing how fracking will affect the socio-economic conditions of local communities.

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Green hydrogen provides one solution for a just transition to a low-carbon economy in the Global South. Absorption of green hydrogen into the energy mix will assist in decarbonising the hard-to-abate sectors, and it may even contribute to the economies of these countries when they transport to the Global North which has excess demand for it. However, this new pivot may also introduce new energy injustices, and this is what this paper focuses on. Through a comparative law analysis of three countries each from the Asia-Pacific (China, Vietnam and Thailand), South America (Brazil, Chile and Colombia) and Africa (South Africa, Kenya and Namibia), and by looking through the lens of procedural justice, this paper marks the first comprehensive examination of this concept for green hydrogen.

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The concept of energy justice has been of much scholarly interest in applying justice principles to energy policy, energy production and systems, energy consumption, political economy of energy and climate change, among other areas. However, legal remedies for energy injustice have not been seriously examined; nor has the topic been considered from the perspective of the Global South. Therefore, this article seeks to examine legal remedies for energy injustice in the ECOWAS sub-region and the role that the Economic Community of West African States Court of Justice, otherwise known as ECOWAS Court, can play in granting these remedies. It finds that the concept of energy justice is an evolving one and that at its current level of evolution, the concept has somewhat incorporated the idea of distributional justice, recognition-based justice and procedural justice. Against the backdrop of these findings, the article argues that energy justice in a distributional, recognition-based and procedural sense can be couched in terms of human rights law under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and can be actualised before the ECOWAS Court. It concludes that energy justice, in its present state of evolution, can be substantially actualised in terms of human rights law before the ECOWAS Court.

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For years, the conflict between the Mapuche people and energy developers has persisted in Chile’s southern Biobío Region. Chile’s future as a leader in renewable development hangs on the drafting of a new law, and workable solutions are needed now more than ever. The voters decisively rejected Chile’s latest constitutional draft, which afforded Indigenous people in Chile unprecedented recognition at the price of a new governmental structure. In the midst of these political developments, Chile is shifting to develop more renewable energy. This shift will require the use of Mapuche ancestral lands and waterways, likely causing increased tensions between the Chilean government, renewable energy developers, and the Mapuche.

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The idea of energy justice has been reflected and implemented in China’s energy policy system over years. However, the existing normative basis of energy justice remains imperfect. China’s special political system and Confucian concept of justice, and its particular focus on energy security, have made its energy transition practices highly efficient but also prone to violating recognition, distributional and procedural justice, resulting in a victim structure that sacrifices the few for the well-being of the many. It is essential to introduce energy justice to achieve sustainable development of China’s energy system and policy transformation in the new era, as energy justice will provide insights for policy stakeholders regarding how to address complex and interrelated energy production and acquisition issues.

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This article proposes a new implementation framework based on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to facilitate energy justice. To accomplish this, it analyses how CSR constructs linked to Multinational Corporations (MNCs) operating within the energy and extractive industry could be used to realise energy justice. This conception is premised on the observation that MNCs possess significant economic influence, which enables them to spur socio-economic transformation. The article advances the conversation on energy justice, shifting the focus from conceptual examination of the concept to ways to enable its practical implementation via the lens of CSR. This proposal represents an active step towards bridging a void in the energy justice literature, as it offers practical solutions for addressing implementation gaps and ensuring the effective implementation of energy justice.

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The Handbook on Energy Justice, an edited collection with 21 chapters (including the introduction) and an afterword, offers key insights into energy justice. It significantly contributes to the scholarship on the subject, which has witnessed sustained expansion in recent times. Energy justice is popular among scholars and practitioners, who have used the concept to highlight and address a wide range of energy-related injustices.

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