Hydropower infrastructure and regional order making in the sub-mekong region

Abstract

This paper conceptualizes the interplay between infrastructures and the reconstruction of regional order. We analyze the promotion of hydropower development in the Greater Mekong Sub-Region in relation to the potential emergence of a Chinese hegemony. Dams, electricity grids and monitoring systems have enabled cross-border linkages and dependencies, enmeshing Chinese actors in various places, markets, and knowledge systems. Yet knowledge controversies over impact assessments and diverging sociotechnical imaginaries indicate that it is too early to talk about a China-centered regional order.