Green energy, old power: Who controls the energy transition in the MENA? |
In Gaza, electricity shortages are not a technical inconvenience; they are a daily constraint on hospitals, water systems and basic dignity. Across other fragile parts of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), rolling power cuts and high energy costs have become politically explosive, exposing how electricity functions as pressure rather than a neutral public service. UN reporting on humanitarian infrastructure repeatedly shows how energy deprivation cascades into wider human insecurity.
Against this backdrop, governments across the region now present renewable energy as a pathway to resilience and modernisation. Solar power, wind projects and green hydrogen sit at the centre of official “Vision” strategies, often framed as a clean route to diversification and post-oil futures. Yet these promises unfold inside deeply entrenched political structures.
Energy transition in the MENA is not simply about replacing fuels. It is about power: who controls generation and grids, who benefits from new investment cycles and who pays the price of reform. Electricity has never been politically neutral in the region. Renewables, on their own, do not change that. Without institutional reform and social inclusion, the green transition risks reproducing existing inequalities under a cleaner label.
For decades, energy systems in the MENA region have underpinned informal social contracts. Subsidised electricity and fuel compensated for weak welfare provision and limited political participation. When prices rose or supply faltered, political consequences followed swiftly.
Renewable energy disrupts this balance. While solar and wind reduce long-term costs, they require upfront investment, regulatory reform and, in many cases, subsidy restructuring. Governments face a persistent dilemma: preserving affordability to maintain social stability while shifting toward new energy models that may initially raise household costs.
Regional energy assessments and official data consistently show strong public resistance to subsidy reform, particularly where institutional trust remains low. As a result, many governments pursue renewable expansion without integrating it........