Where walls of power meet the wall of money: Hydropower in the age of financialization

Abstract

AbstractTheir ability to absorb substantial capital makes hydropower dams attractive projects for the “wall of money.” Although global webs of dynamic financial flows enable megaspatial transformations with huge temporal impacts, their opacity and fragmentation obfuscate possibilities for democratic decision making and accountability. This paper explores the question whether the interest in renewables and the ability of large infrastructure to absorb capital has changed the role of large dams as instruments of political, financial, and territorial power. An analytical framework inspired by Lefebvre's concept of “production of space” is used to examine the structural and context‐specific dimensions of current hydropower development. Ultimately, we hope to contribute to an alternative conception of the landscape in which the myopic focus on capital accumulation is replaced with social and environmental justice.