Rooftop Solar in Saudi Arabia’s Energy Transition: Barriers and Opportunities Through the Lens of Energy Justice

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the effectiveness of Saudi Arabia’s energy policies in promoting residential adoption of rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, with a particular focus on equity and fairness through the framework of energy justice. While the Kingdom possesses exceptional solar potential and has articulated ambitious diversification goals under Vision 2030, household level adoption of rooftop PV remains negligible. The study applies document analysis to seven key policy and regulatory texts produced by state institutions, including the Saudi Electricity Regulatory Authority (SERA), the Saudi Electricity Company (SEC), and the Saudi Energy Efficiency Center (SEEC).

The findings demonstrate that barriers to adoption extend beyond technical feasibility or economic cost to include distributional, procedural, and recognition deficits. Distributional arrangements preserve low electricity tariffs and impose unattractive net billing rates, limiting incentives for households while favouring wealthier property owners. Procedural justice is undermined by complex application processes and centralised governance, which privilege institutional actors and restrict meaningful household participation. Recognition justice is constrained by the homogenisation of consumers as property owning and technically capable, with limited acknowledgement of tenants, vulnerable groups, or the need for targeted awareness programmes.

Across all three dimensions, centralisation emerges as a defining feature of Saudi rooftop PV governance. Policies are designed to deliver national diversification and utility scale renewable capacity, but households remain marginalised in practice. The research contributes by situating Saudi energy governance within energy justice debates, showing that inclusive and sustainable transitions require institutional frameworks that recognise households as active participants rather than passive consumers.