Between green extractivism and energy justice: competing strategies in South Africa’s hydrogen transition in the context of climate crisis

ABSTRACTThe global race for green hydrogen is not just about decarbonisation, but also about power and profit. Examining the formation of a political project around an emerging hydrogen economy in South Africa, this article shows that a hydrogen transition is fundamentally contested. Employing (neo-)Gramscian hegemony theory and historical materialist policy analysis, it delineates four competing hydrogen initiatives in the policy debate: green extractivism, green developmentalism, fossilism and energy justice. The findings indicate the dominance of green extractivism, which prioritises the export of green hydrogen to Europe and reproduces patterns of neocolonialism and unequal ecological exchange. Contestations arise both from reactionary forces clinging to fossil fuels as well as from initiatives pursuing justice-centred transitions through green developmentalism and energy justice. This study contributes to the debate on justice in the global energy transition by highlighting alternative transition pathways in the global South that challenge green extractivism through sovereign industrial development and energy justice.RÉSUMÉLa course mondiale à l’hydrogène vert n’est pas seulement une question de décarbonisation, mais aussi de pouvoir et de profit. En examinant la formation d’un projet politique autour de l’émergence d’une économie de l’hydrogène en Afrique du Sud, nous montrons que la transition vers l’hydrogène est fondamentalement contestée. En nous appuyant sur la théorie de l’hégémonie (néo-)gramscienne et sur l’analyse matérialiste historique des politiques, nous délimitons quatre initiatives concurrentes dans le débat politique relatif à l’hydrogène : l’extractivisme vert, le développementalisme vert, le fossilisme et la justice énergétique. Nos conclusions soulignent la prédominance de l’extractivisme vert, qui donne la priorité à l’exportation d’hydrogène vert à destination de l’Europe et reproduit des schémas de néocolonialisme et d’échange écologique inégal. Les contestations proviennent à la fois des forces réactionnaires qui s’accrochent aux combustibles fossiles et des initiatives poursuivant des transitions axées sur la justice par le biais d’un développement vert et d’une justice énergétique. Cette étude contribue au débat relatif à la justice dans la transition énergétique mondiale en mettant en évidence des voies de transition alternatives dans les pays du Sud qui remettent en question l’extractivisme vert par le biais d’un développement industriel souverain et de la justice énergétique.RESUMOA corrida global ao hidrogénio verde não tem apenas a ver com a descarbonização, mas também com a energia e o lucro. Analisando a formação de um projeto político em torno de uma economia emergente de hidrogênio na África do Sul, este artigo mostra que as transições de hidrogénio são fundamentalmente processos contestados. Empregando a teoria da hegemonia (neo)gramsciana e a análise política materialista histórica, expõem-se quatro iniciativas concorrentes no debate político: extrativismo verde, desenvolvimentismo verde, fossilismo e justiça energética. Os resultados indicam o domínio do extrativismo verde, que prioriza a exportação de hidrogênio verde para a Europa e reproduz padrões de neocolonialismo e trocas ecológicas desiguais. As contestações surgem tanto de forças reacionárias agarradas aos combustíveis fósseis como de iniciativas que procuram transições centradas na justiça através do desenvolvimentismo verde e da justiça energética. Este estudo contribui para o debate sobre a justiça na transição energética global, destacando caminhos alternativos de transição no Sul global que desafiam o extrativismo verde através do desenvolvimento industrial soberano e da justiça energética.KEYWORDS: Green hydrogenenergy transitiongreen extractivism(neo-)Gramscianismindustrial policyenergy justiceMOTS-CLÉS: Hydrogène verttransition énergétiqueextractivisme vert(néo-)Gramscianismepolitique industriellejustice énergétiquePALAVRAS-CHAVE: Hidrogênio verdetransição energéticaextrativismo verde(neo-)Gramscianismopolítica industrialjustiça energética AcknowledgementsWe would like to express our gratitude to the interviewees for their valuable contributions.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.Notes1 The interviews have been anonymised and are cited in the text as i1,i2, etc. A complete list of interviews is provided at the end of this article.2 Load shedding – deliberate, temporary power cuts due to insufficient capacity – has plagued South Africa since 2008, with the energy crisis intensifying to cause over 200 days of load shedding in 2022 (Thukwana Citation2023).3 Load reduction refers to planned power cuts in times of electricity shortages that disproportionately take place in Black working-class communities.4 PJ/a stands for petrajoules per annum, a unit to measure the consumption of large amounts of energy.Additional informationFundingBundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung 16ITA201A/B.Notes on contributorsTobias KaltTobias Kalt is a political ecologist at the University of Hamburg, researching power relations and inequalities in the global energy transition; tobias.kalt@uni-hamburg.de.Jenny SimonJenny Simon is a senior researcher at the University of Hamburg who specialises in the global political economy, and is member of the editorial board of PROKLA – Journal for Critical Social Science; jenny.simon@uni-hamburg.de.Johanna TunnJohanna Tunn is a doctoral researcher at the University of Hamburg, focusing on climate adaptation, climate finance and epistemic violence in the Anthropocene; johanna.tunn@uni-hamburg.de.Jesko HennigJesko Hennig is a student of political science at the University of Hamburg. He focuses on theories of change and revolution.