Plot, power, promises: Community decision-making at the land-energy nexus in South Africa

Abstract

South Africa's coal-dependent energy system has struggled to meet national demand for nearly two decades, resulting in persistent loadshedding and an urgent push for renewable alternatives aligned with SDG 7. Although the country possesses significant solar and wind potential, expansion of utility-scale renewable energy is constrained by the availability of suitable land near existing grid infrastructure. Increasingly, developers are turning to land held under customary tenure, yet the social implications of this shift remain under-examined. This study investigates the Bolobedu solar farm in Limpopo Province to understand how local and regional traditional authorities perceive the conversion of agricultural land to a renewable energy facility. Drawing on interviews with both developers and tribal leaders, we find that while the project delivers notable benefits, including employment opportunities and revenue generation through land leasing, it also introduces challenges related to the loss of agricultural land, uneven information flows, and perceived imbalances in negotiation power. We introduce the framework “plot, power, promises” to conceptualise how land parcels, authority relations, and expectations of development shape community experiences during land-use transitions. As customary land is likely to play an increasingly central role in southern Africa's energy transition, our findings highlight the need for stronger procedural justice, more transparent benefit-sharing mechanisms, and improved community engagement.