Uneasy tensions in research on local responses to large-scale solar plants: A critical and integrative review

Abstract

Driven by the construction of new large solar power plants, recent years have seen a boom in solar PV energy, with global capacity tripling between 2018 and 2023. By the end of this decade, solar is set to become the largest renewable energy source, surpassing both wind and hydropower. However, the growing number and scale of solar projects are raising concerns about their socio-ecological impacts and energy justice implications. Conflicts at deployment sites are becoming more frequent, challenging long-held assumptions about solar energy’s public acceptability. While research on social acceptance and energy justice has mainly focused on other technologies, there is now a growing body of social science work examining large-scale solar plants. Yet this literature remains fragmented: diverse methodologies, conceptual frameworks, and normative standpoints make it difficult to develop integrated understandings of why injustices and opposition occur, what solutions are being proposed, and how they are pursued. This article addresses these gaps through a critical and integrative review of 255 peer-reviewed studies that empirically examine large-scale solar deployment. We identify five overarching themes of research focused on institutions, perceptions, impacts, conflicts, and solutions. These themes are shaped not only by their research objects but also by distinct disciplinary knowledge and goals. By bridging these perspectives, we propose a critical and relational metatheoretical perspective that highlights new research directions and offers a basis for more holistic understanding and practice.