Colonialism Hijacks Energy Transition

The Oxfam report describes the “plunder” of minerals like lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare earths, land grabs for bioenergy, carbon removal projects, and seizure of large-scale resources for hydropower, wind and solar.

These projects often involve violence, forced labour, and environmental harm, with little consent from local people living inside these new “sacrifice zones”.  

Currently, mining, renewable energy projects and industrial development linked to the energy transition – overwhelmingly driven by the Global North and powerful elites – are threatening the rights of indigenous peoples in as much as 60% of their recognized lands; at 22.7m km².

This is roughly the size of Brazil, US and India combined, or the equivalent of twice the area of the entire French empire at its peak. 

“The richest countries and super-rich individuals are driving the climate crisis to its current tipping point, over-consuming the carbon budget through deeply unequal and extractive systems.

Now they are trying to capture and control the energy transition at the expense of the poorest and most climate-vulnerable countries, driving up inequality further,” said Oxfam Executive Director Amitabh Behar.

“A truly just transition starts with an end to the patterns of injustice, misrule and excess.” 

Rich countries and powerful elites also dominate the international financial architecture, pouring billions into their own transitions while locking Global South countries into a growing debt crisis and leaving them little to fund their own development. 

So-called developing countries owe $11.7 trillion in external debt—more than 30 times the estimated cost of providing universal clean energy by 2030. 

“Many Southern countries are being locked out of transition altogether despite having significant potential – 70% of the world’s wind and solar potential lies in the Global South…

… Their governments can’t take advantage of falling renewable costs because of high debt and unfair lending terms. Our research shows that the cost of powering people is almost twice as high in African countries, compared to the price in advanced economies…

… If they do engage with foreign investment, it is all led by extraction and the pursuit of profits for the few over the public good for the many,” Behar said. 

Securing a just transition also means tackling today’s shocking inequality in energy access. The richest 10% of citizens consume half of all global energy, while the poorest half of humanity consumes just 8%.

If redistributed, the energy consumed by the wealthiest 1% alone would be enough to meet the basic energy needs of people without electricity access seven times over. 

“Addressing inequality and colonialism in the transition offers an opportunity to radically reshape the energy landscape…

… Indigenous People, communities, women, workers and progressive local governments are already building new energy systems rooted in local control, progressive economics and ecological care, and where decent work, social protections, indigenous rights, and reskilling are placed at the core,” said Behar.

“We must support them so that the transition stops serving profit and starts serving life.” 

Oxfam’s report calls on policymakers to adopt a new decolonized and decentralized energy system, which recognizes and repairs the harms of the historical power imbalance and prioritizes global cooperation and solidarity by: 

• Adopting a public-first financing approach to climate and development goals and rejecting the ‘Wall Street Consensus’ model where public money is used to guarantee private profits.
• Rich polluting individuals, companies and countries need to recognize their responsibility for the climate crisis and pay for the damage.
• Radically reforming international tax, trade and financing models to unlock current barriers for the just energy transition in Global South countries. These tools include domestic value addition, technology transfer and industrial sovereignty
• End exploitative practices and uphold labor rights and human rights in the energy transition, including recognizing the land rights and sovereignty of Indigenous peoples.