Room for money or manoeuvre? How green financialization and de-risking shape Zambia’s renewable energy transition

ABSTRACT SDG-backed green finance efforts have become popular vehicles for private investors to participate in development collaborations. We critically examine two transnational renewable energy projects in Zambia, drawing on the financialization literature and, particularly, the concept of de-risking. We find that new public–private partnership coalitions impose a global market and financial logic on the Zambian energy sector and its customers. While this development may attract transnational investment into renewables, we argue that it also sidelines smaller Zambian businesses and financializes the daily life of Zambian citizens. This paper, thus, provides critical scholarly insights into the greening of contemporary development practices.