Timely transitions? How time-bound targets shape visions for the future of emerging energy storage technologies

Cutting-edge energy storage technologies can play a promising role in attaining climate targets. However, due to their emergent nature, these technologies’ future partly depends on stakeholders’ visions. These visions arise within the context of climate targets. While such time-bound targets are often championed as a means to accelerate change toward a goal, existing studies also indicate that they may limit stakeholders’ ability to envision alternative futures. Despite the growing use of time-bound targets in policy and planning, little is known about how they shape visions for emerging technologies. This article addresses this gap by examining how climate targets shape stakeholders’ visions for the future of emerging energy storage technologies. Drawing on 31 in-depth interviews with stakeholders in the Netherlands, we identify three distinct visions: (1) Removing barriers: 2030 as a call for targeted interventions; (2) Rallying the nation: 2030 as a deadline for coordinated state action; (3) Local answers to a looming deadline: 2030 as a push for decentralized solutions. Our analysis reveals that time-bound targets shaped these visions in three ways: by narrowing the envisioning process; by compartmentalizing the process into manageable steps; and by prioritizing urgent change. These dynamics both enable and constrain the scope of envisioned change.