The process matters: Exploring public participation in solar energy projects in Brazil and Portugal

The ongoing climate crisis increases the priority to rapidly deploy renewable energy technologies. Solar energy generation is in continuous growth, raising concerns over local-level effects. For instance, large-scale solar photovoltaic projects may overlook the place-sensitive nature, socioeconomic, and sociopolitical conditions, compromising a just energy transition. Considered win-win solutions from a national perspective, potentially catering to an affordable energy supply with low environmental impacts, solar projects may be assessed concerning civic, community, and stakeholders' expectations for participation. An inclusive process must consider the opinions of different stakeholders, guaranteeing procedural justice (i.e. access to information, representation legitimacy, influence in timely decision-making, and power relations among actors), through effective social participation. This work relies on the energy justice framework, with a specific focus on procedural justice aspects to investigate stakeholder perspectives on centralized and decentralized solar photovoltaic generation models. While comparing evidence from 47 interviews and fieldwork in Brazil and Portugal, this study identifies social participation expectations and procedures to safeguard justice aspects. The novelty lies in offering an original comparison of energy justice practices on solar generation models across geographies. The key question is to understand how procedural justice is being enacted in practice, proposing policy actions to promote participation, and avoid tensions and conflicts that may delay the energy transition implementation. It concludes that to achieve a just energy transition, a fast-paced renewable energy deployment is critical, but the process matters. • Explores tensions of top-down solar energy deployment with effective participation • Relies on 47 interviews and field observations in Brazil and Portugal • Compares procedural justice aspects of centralized and decentralized solar projects • Identifies participation expectations and procedures to safeguard justice aspects • Proposes policy actions promoting justice in the rapid expansion of solar energy