Introduction: Uneven geographies of electricity capital

Abstract

This special issue considers the relationship between energy, capitalism, and space through the lens of electricity capital. Electricity capital is the nexus of state, regulatory, and financial relationships that shape private accumulation through electricity provision. Although electricity provision is marked by immense historical and geographical diversity, the papers in this special issue work to theorize it as a core fraction of capital to draw into focus continuities and disruptions in capital flows amid the transition from fossil fuels to a diversity of clean sources. This special issue bridges debates in critical energy studies, economic geography, and political ecology on the possibilities of economic transformation through clean energy infrastructure by examining the dialectic between private accumulation through electrification and labor, environmental, and environmental justice organizing for “energy justice.” This special issue sheds light on the contradictory social relations that shape electrical power provision. We understand that electricity is seen not only as an energy source but also as an investment opportunity, a climate change mitigation strategy, an employment prospect, a component of economic development, and a site of democratic, community organizing. In so doing, we analyze the regulatory, financial, and infrastructural impediments to energy justice and international struggles to decarbonize the power sector to address climate change and to achieve universal and equitable electricity service.