Exploring agency–structure dynamics in green path development: evidence from the emerging battery industries in Arendal and Gothenburg

The paper investigates agency – structure dynamics in green regional industrial path development in contrasting regional innovation systems (RISs). Empirically, the article draws from the emerging battery industries in the thick and diversified RIS of Gothenburg, Sweden, and the thick and specialised RIS of Arendal, Norway. Following a path tracing method, the paper highlights how Volvo Cars played a key role in initiating a battery partnership with Northvolt in Gothenburg. In contrast, the emergence of the battery industry in Arendal relied more on system-level agency and institutional support. Furthermore, the article demonstrates that the distinction between firm- and system-level agency in green path development processes may be blurry. Actors at both levels sometimes merged their actions and pursued shared objectives from a unified platform. We call this merger of firm- and system-level agency ‘coalition agency’ and identify it as a key driver of green path development in the two cases.