Briefing

“We were treated as if we were machines”: Migrant workers powering Saudi Arabia’s energy transition

Without the labourers, these projects would not be possible… Laborers are the foundation of these projects, the ones who turn difficult plans into reality through their hard work. Yet, they are subjected to such unfair treatment.

Nepali construction worker on NEOM Green Hydrogen Project

Shutterstock (licensed)

“We were treated as if we were machines”: Migrant workers powering Saudi Arabia’s energy transition

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We are witnessing a drive to renewables amidst the escalating climate emergency and increasing energy insecurity in a world on fire. Deep, rapid and sustained decarbonisation is crucial, and businesses and investors are central to this transition: investment in clean energy worldwide will need to triple by 2030 to reach net zero by 2050 and 90% of global electricity generation will need to come from renewables.

The energy transition represents a huge opportunity for business, people and planet. However, this opportunity can only be realised if the transition is not only fast, but also fair – including for the communities and workers upon whose support the transition depends.

This report considers the context of Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest crude oil exporter and one of the world’s biggest emitters of greenhouse gas. The notorious petrostate nevertheless has excellent renewable energy potential, with the industry having seen significant growth in the past decade.

The country’s renewables industry relies on the labour of migrant workers, yet these workers are vulnerable to systemic human rights violations. Using live tracking by the Resource Centre of 40 renewables projects in Saudi Arabia and interviews with Nepali and Bangladeshi workers in the supply chains of well-known multinationals, this report brings this into sharp relief: over half (53%) of migrant workers interviewed for this report experienced five or more indicators of forced labour.

These abuses evidence an environment of alarming dehumanisation. One migrant worker on a Saudi Arabian renewable project put it simply: [we] are “treated as if [we] are machines”.

Workers reported a range of labour rights violations

34/34

Charged recruitment fees

with workers charged over USD1,600 for jobs on average

18/20

reported occupational health & safety risks

incl., heat exposure, 'infestations' of snakes, and other risks

0/34

asked about their working conditions

by their employer or another entity, creating barriers accessing remedy

11/34

reported retaliation for raising complaints

creating a culture of fear on worksites

These findings of abuse are particularly concerning as Saudi Arabia increasingly touts its ‘sustainability’ to consolidate its soft power abroad while obfuscating human rights abuses, including in its recently ratified bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

In this context, it is vital the experiences of migrants are surfaced, not silenced. This report seeks to fill this gap, through:

Overview of the renewable industry landscape in Saudi Arabia, and an outline of the risks migrants face due to the structure of the industry.
Testimony from 34 migrant workers employed on nine renewable energy projects in Saudi Arabia, alleging a range of human rights violations.
Analysis of the public human rights commitments of 16 companies we have linked to projects where we identified abuse, and an overview of the responsibilities of financiers for these project.

[Companies] only need workers who work well for them. They don’t care whether they paid money or not. They don’t care whether they were exploited or not. They just want to make money from the workers. This is the real game of companies.

Nepali cleaning and maintenance worker on Saad 2 Solar PV Project

All companies named in the report with business connections to the projects where we identified abuse were invited to respond to its findings. Responses can be read in full here.