Why are solar microgrids not the norm in remote Central Australia? Exploring local perception on solar energy and health

Australia has immense potential to harness solar energy. Despite this potential, the electricity sector still contributes to one-third of the country's greenhouse gas emissions. Solar projects are important in remote Aboriginal communities because remote residents regularly face energy poverty and energy insecurity. Frequent power disconnections affect people's health and daily life activities. This study explores the enablers and barriers to solar energy adoption and the benefits of having solar microgrids in remote Australia. Three sets of data, which included researcher observations and two sets of qualitative data were triangulated for the purpose of this study. Qualitative data included – i) virtual semi-structured interviews with professional and policy experts with experience in promoting and implementing solar projects in Central Australia and ii) one-to-one ‘yarns’ or community ‘yarning circles’ with Aboriginal residents of very remote communities of central Australia. The collected qualitative data were coded deductively, whereby similar codes were placed into broader themes. Seven renewable energy industry and policy experts participated in the interviews. Thirty community members from across three very remote locations in central Australia were engaged through one-to-one yarning and group yarning activities. There is clear evidence from all three communities that the environmental costs of using diesel-powered generators are largely unknown to residents. While power costs and energy poverty were discussed as issues in the three communities, industry expert opinion was that residents’ economic motivation to switch from diesel to solar power was masked by the fact that power costs were not dependent on the source of power, but were provided at subsidised rates in remote Australia. In general, community yarns were mostly around the need for energy security in remote households, rather than the need to switch to clean energy sources. The study concludes that small solar microgrids and rooftop solar technology have the potential to improve energy and climate resilience in remote Australia. However, to effectively promote such investments in very remote settings, there is a need to appropriately engage with local community members and evaluate and communicate the overall social, environmental, and economic benefits of transitioning to solar.