Chapter 2: Investigating Green Colonialism and Energy Justice in the Development of Lake Turkana Wind Power Project in Kenya

In recent decades, large-scale renewable energy projects championed by international actors have been implemented in the Global South with the reasoning that they increase energy security while simultaneously contributing to climate change mitigation. However, many of these projects have increasingly come under scrutiny regarding tendencies of energy injustices and green colonialism. We argue that large-scale renewable energy projects, although often developed with positive intentions for development, are prone to green colonialism – implying how colonial continuities interact with climate action, thereby leading to energy injustices manifested in the form of social inequality, human rights violations, or environmental degradation. Importantly, these colonial continuities are not unique to renewable energy; they originate from fossil energy when electricity was introduced by colonial powers. Investigating these trends is crucial to enhancing the positive impacts and sustainability of renewable energy projects in the Global South. Using Africa's largest wind farm, the Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP) project in Kenya, as a case study, this chapter critically examines how large-scale renewable energy projects may exhibit tendencies of green colonialism and undermine energy justice principles. We write not with the intent to outrightly condemn investors and developers of such projects but rather to contribute to improvement of what are often complex and dilemma-prone processes of renewable energy development in Africa. Our analysis is informed by 15 semi-structured key informant interviews and complemented by document analysis of reports, legal documents, and scientific literature. We employ perspectives from post-colonial studies and energy justice to conceptually frame our study.