Future converging infrastructures

Assessing the consequences of increasing sector coupling and integration

Abstract

The process of converging infrastructures – the integration and coupling of the energy, transport, heating and cooling sectors – challenges technological paradigms and economic structures as well as patterns of individual and collective action. Renewable energy sources (RES), physical and digital networks, and new market opportunities promise more efficient use of energy and reduced emissions. However, every technological solution creates new problems. Therefore, we propose to analyze possible developments by exposing socio-technical problems. This contribution analyses recent studies drawing on sector coupling and assesses the consequences of converging infrastructures.