Featured in Treasure Islands – 08-2024

In the throes of uncertainty

Since May 2024, New Caledonia has been shaken by a new cycle of violence, against a backdrop of social inequality and crisis in the mining sector. While the government had high ambitions for solar, developers are struggling with financing difficulties.

By

Gwénaëlle Deboutte

12 Aug 2024

The mining and processing of nickel, a critical energy transition material, employs up to 25,000 people in New Caledonia. Industry issues and possible job losses have contributed to recent unrest in the region. | Photo: SLN

A solar developer in New Caledonia, a French overseas territory 16,000 km from Paris, has described the situation on the island as “extremely tense.” The scars of recent violence are still visible on the streets, as well as in people’s minds across the Pacific nation’s dozen islands and islets. In May 2024, after 36 years of …

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