Tsoeu-Ntokoane, Seroala;
Kali, Moeketsi;
Lemaire, Xavier;
(2025)
Transitioning to cleaner solutions and moving away from precautionary energy stacking in Lesotho households.
Discover Energy
, 5
, Article 24. 10.1007/s43937-025-00080-w.
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Abstract
The optimism that the world will be heading for 100% renewable energy has recently heightened within academia and policymakers. This paper interrogates the prevailing energy patterns in Lesotho, where households depend on multiple energy sources, combining renewables and non-renewables. While there is increased access to grid electricity and solar technologies, the data reveals a persistent reliance on biomass, paraffin, coal, and liquefied petroleum gas. Drawing on qualitative fieldwork, the study demonstrates that the current trend is not merely transitional but is shaped by distinct socio-economic and infrastructural realities. Three key factors underpin the continued preference for energy combinations. First, renewable energy penetration in rural areas remains limited. Second, affordability concerns, particularly the cost of connection and usage, severely constrain households. Third, precautionary behaviours in response to unreliable electricity supply and the perceived inefficiency of some renewable technologies push households to keep alternative sources on standby. Efforts to abandon fossil-based energy use will remain aspirational unless energy transitions account for these patterns and the reasons behind them. Meaningful progress towards sustainable energy in Lesotho requires a deliberate shift in how communities are engaged. Strategies must move beyond top-down electrification, but instead emphasise local knowledge and user priorities, which are key.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Transitioning to cleaner solutions and moving away from precautionary energy stacking in Lesotho households |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s43937-025-00080-w |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1007/s43937-025-00080-w |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this licence to share adapted material derived from this article or parts of it. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/. |
| Keywords: | Energy transition, Energy mix, Energy stacking, Public participation, Lesotho |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > Bartlett School Env, Energy and Resources |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10213321 |
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