Multi-technology interaction in socio-technical transitions: How recent dynamics in HVDC technology can inform transition theories

Studies of socio-technical transitions have often focused on niche emergence or on the interaction of niche and regime technologies in a ‘single-sector’ setting. Such analyses are particularly important in the early stages of transitions, when there is a primary interest in developing novel technologies. In later phases, transitions do not only involve multiple technologies but also multiple sectors, which means that the complexity of technology dynamics increases. We want to improve established frameworks—technological innovation systems and the multi-level perspective—to account for such phenomena. We study HVDC technology, which is a mature technology for electricity transmission that has remained in a niche for decades but recently gained new momentum as the ongoing transition in the electricity sector accelerated. Our case highlights: i) the importance of multi-technology interaction within and across sectors, ii) an important role for innovating incumbents responding to these dynamics, and iii) an increasing relevance of multi-technology interactions and organizational responses in advanced stages of transitions. To guide our analysis, we introduce a novel multi-technology map. Such a tool can be useful to complement existing frameworks.