A National Law as an Actor–network: How Guatemala’s General Electricity Law of 1996 Shaped the Country’s Environmental Conflicts over Hydroelectricity

This paper uses controversy mapping to study the history of Guatemala’s General Electricity Law (GGEL, 1996). Particular attention is paid to the impact of the GGEL on social conflicts related to hydroelectricity. This article discusses how an array of actors –right–wing political parties and influencers, the ‘El Niño’ Phenomenon, the international wave of neoliberalism and a malfunctioning dam– coalesced to promote a law intended to modernize Guatemala’s energy market and expand its electrical grid. Twenty years later, GGEL remains a relevant actor in the conflicts around new hydroelectricity projects. However, counter to the intentions of its promoters, this law has helped to fuel controversy. First, it indirectly imposes restrictions on negotiations among project stakeholders by forbidding the sale of energy to third parties; thus, it deprives actors of their strongest bargaining asset. Second, GGEL makes territorial interdependence invisible, shifting the costs and responsibilities from the government and companies to communities. Finally, while other studies have simply portrayed GGEL as a result of neoliberalism, an Actor–network theory (ANT) approach provides a broader picture of its origin and impact by taking into account the GGEL’s role as a non–human actor.