For First Nations communities, energy insecurity is not new. But the shift to renewables is more urgent than ever

As global fuel prices surge amid devastating impacts on families and the development of a humanitarian crisis through conflict in the Middle East, many of us and our critical industries are feeling the pinch. 

In remote First Nations communities primarily reliant on diesel power stations, the steep price hikes are a reminder of a deeper, ongoing vulnerability. 

With growing concerns about fuel shortages and the transport of goods and services, remote communities are facing uncertainty about the reliability and rationing of supply and significantly, the ongoing viability of diesel-reliant essential services providing their power and drinking water.

The Northern Territory has over 70 remote communities supplied by diesel power stations. Western Australia has more than 100, Queensland has 33, and dozens are located in South Australia. 

Many of those communities are already climate vulnerable – facing intense heat, flooding and disruption caused by extreme weather events – whilst also dealing with some of the most unreliable and expensive energy in Australia. 

When fuel costs rise, everything rises. The cost of keeping lights on. The cost of getting food into communities. The cost of running essential services. Even with subsidies, electricity remains unaffordable for many households, particularly when delivered through ‘prepayment’ systems placing additional burden directly on those least able to pay, resulting in multiple disconnections each year, often for days at a time.

For many families doing it tough, there is little buffer. Every price spike stretches households further, exposing just how little resilience the current system provides. 

For remote communities, energy insecurity is not new. It is built into a global system that relies on costly diesel – fuel shipped across the world, exposed to global price shocks and conflict, and transported vast distances in challenging conditions to remote areas. 

Coupled with fuel price rises, this ongoing insecurity makes clear the urgent need to transition remote communities to cheaper, cleaner, more reliable energy.

Government-owned utilities have had decades of warning to implement diesel reduction and other initiatives towards decarbonisation. The First Nations Clean Energy Network during the development of Australia’s First Nations Clean Energy Strategy 2024-2030 again highlighted how diesel dependence leaves communities vulnerable to exactly the kind of global shocks we are seeing.

This is not old news. We need arrangements in policy, regulatory and funding systems to enable community-led renewable energy development.

Across the country, First Nations communities are showing what solutions can look like.

In the Northern Territory, the Marlinja community north of Alice Springs has taken a historic step — developing Australia’s first First Nations-owned, grid-connected solar system. It’s more than reducing reliance on diesel. It’s about enabling clean energy independence and building local capability in the industries and economies of the future.

Similarly, remote Wujal Wujal in Queensland is showing how community-led renewable systems can strengthen resilience – protecting against both global fuel shocks and the growing impact of cyclonic events in the region.

And Djarindjin north of Broome in Western Australia is working to supply up to 80 per cent of their local region’s electricity through a community-owned solar and battery project, aiming to deliver reliable power, local control, and real income streams to support economic development.

First Nations community-led renewable energy systems – including solar and battery storage integrated into stand-alone power systems – offer remote areas at the end of the line something diesel never can: stability. 

Community-owned systems reduce generation costs for utilities and governments, alleviate household energy insecurity, and provide long-term local jobs in industries replacing polluting, aging, high-risk infrastructure.

This is what real energy security looks like.

The challenge is that these and other community-led projects are the exception, not the norm. That needs to change.

As global instability drives price uncertainty, governments in the first instance must provide clear assurances that remote communities will have interim reliable access to energy to keep power stations and homeland generators running, ensuring the health and wellbeing of the many thousands of people living in remote communities are not overlooked in national fuel security planning.

The long-term fix is already in front of us — and being led by communities themselves.

Reducing reliance on diesel locks communities into lower costs and increased energy security. 

State and Territory Governments can scale up support and investment in community-led renewable energy by providing access to concessional finance and underwriting facilities so communities can own and benefit from their energy assets, supporting local governance, workforce development and long-term capability, and removing the policy and regulatory barriers holding back projects.

Energy security should not depend on the next fuel shipment. It should be built on Country, powered locally, and designed to last.

First Nations Clean Energy Network