Partnering for energy justice: Indigenous–corporate relationships in renewable energy industries in Australia

Abstract

Around the world Indigenous communities are involved in the renewable energy industries. Relationships with for-profit corporations are integral to this development. Indigenous communities are entering into partnership with renewable energy corporations or developing their own renewable energy corporations. Relying on doctrinal, desk and case study methodologies, this article analyses six case studies and identifies three Indigenous–corporate relationships in the renewable energy sector in Australia. These include (1) renewable energy corporations that have proposed partial agreements with Indigenous communities; (2) Indigenous-led partnerships with non-Indigenous corporations; and (3) Indigenous-owned renewable energy projects. We interrogate these Indigenous–corporate relations in the context of energy justice with a focus on fairness in procedure, recognition, and distribution of benefits. We conclude by highlighting the gaps in energy justice in the current practices of Indigenous–corporate relations in renewable energy industries in Australia. Accordingly, this article is significant because it fills a gap in the scholarly literature on Indigenous and corporate relationships. Furthermore, it sheds light on the practices in the field that play an important role in government and community policy development centred around the improvement of Indigenous and corporate relationships–and settler colonial interactions more generally.