The materiality of failed futures : tensions and transformations of a fossil infrastructure
Clot-Garrell, Anna (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Sociologia)

Data:	2026
Resum:	Infrastructures for renewable energy are central to contemporary political responses to the imperative of decarbonization. As green technological promises gain momentum, it becomes crucial to examine not only what is newly emerging but also what is being rendered obsolete and left behind-the promised futures that turned out to have failed while new ones emerge as promising. This article addresses these debates by empirically examining the historical trajectory of a coal-fired power plant in a carbon-intensive region of the Catalan Pyrenees, showcasing it as a fossil infrastructure emblematic of modern society's material foundations and aspirations. Based on qualitative research into the situated processes of construction, deterioration, abandonment and transformation, this paper elucidates how the power plant vividly embodies the modern conception of the future as open, accelerated and progress-oriented. However, the plant's nonlinear trajectory and enduring materiality over time reveal the tensions, contradictions and limits of this hegemonic notion of the future. By analyzing industrial remnants as material traces of failed futures, this article highlights their critical role in shaping sustainable pathways, particularly as green technological initiatives emerge in contexts where industrial forces once flourished.
Nota:	Altres ajuts: Juan de la Cierva-Incorporación Programme (Grant IJC2020-045538-I)
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Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió acceptada per publicar
Matèria:	Coal ; Failure ; Fossil ; Future ; Infrastructure ; Materiality ; SDG 10 - reduced inequalities ; SDG 7 - affordable and clean energy
Publicat a:	Social science information, Vol. 64, Num. 3-4 (2026) , p. 355-379, ISSN 1461-7412

DOI: 10.1177/05390184251394194

Postprint 24 p, 1.1 MB

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