Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-28DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114833
Asif Javed , Nimra Usman
{"title":"Skill-biased labour market effects of environmental policy and green energy transition in Italy","authors":"Asif Javed , Nimra Usman","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114833","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114833","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Environmental regulations and energy transition play an instrumental role in pollution mitigation and labour dynamics, impacting skilled-biased workers. While previous research has addressed the green energy transition and environmental regulations, the exploration of their impact on skill-biased labour has remained limited. This study integrates Environmental Policy Stringency (EPS), Green Energy Transition (GETR), and macroeconomic indicators to analyse the skill structure, focusing on high-skilled (HSL) and low-skilled (LSL) labour demand in Italy from 1992 to 2020. By employing the Novel Dynamic Simulated Autoregressive Distributed Lag (DYARDL) model and the frequency domain causality (FDC) test, our research investigates both the long term and short term relationships among variables, while exploring the causal direction. The study's findings strongly suggest that variables exhibit longterm cointegration. Moreover, the research indicates an anticipated rise in demand for high-skilled labour due to stringent environmental regulations and the transition to renewable energy. Conversely, the study highlights a potential decrease in the demand for low-skilled labour in traditional energy sectors. It is advisable to regulate labour market impact assessments before implementing any significant changes; strengthen the social safety net to cushion the transition phase; establish a labour monitoring unit to analyse evolving trends of the Green transition impacting labour markets; target green investments geographically to upskill semi-skilled and unskilled workers; simplify the regulatory framework; and mainstream green apprenticeships and skill-based modules in formal education.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114833"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144907697","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-27DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114847
Rong Guan , Huijuan Wang , Ruotong Zheng , Xunpeng Shi , Ke Wang
{"title":"Evaluating the impact of digital technologies on energy efficiency: Evidence from Chinese publicly listed companies","authors":"Rong Guan , Huijuan Wang , Ruotong Zheng , Xunpeng Shi , Ke Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114847","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114847","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aims to evaluate the impact of digital technology adoption on energy efficiency in China's publicly listed industrial firms. It employs text mining techniques and a difference-in-differences model to conduct the evaluation. The empirical analysis quantifies a 52.69 % reduction in energy intensity for firms adopting digital technologies. The short-term effect of adopting digital technologies is the most obvious, but the effect gradually diminishes over time due to the lack of core technologies and the energy rebound effect. Energy efficiency improvements are driven by reductions in energy consumption and increases in total factor productivity. There are significant regional differences in the adoption of digital technologies, with firms in Eastern China benefiting more, mainly due to higher levels of productivity and resource optimization. Spatial analysis further shows firms in low-energy-intensity provinces benefit from digital adoption, while those in high-energy-intensity provinces have no significant effects despite spatial spillovers. These results underscore the importance of fostering synergies between digital technology adoption and carbon reduction, advancing energy-saving technologies, and tailoring policies to regional contexts to maximize benefits. Additionally, balancing environmental regulations with market mechanisms and providing incentives for technological innovation are critical for promoting widespread adoption of digital technologies to enhance energy efficiency.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114847"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144903798","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-25DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114839
Lei Chen , Nana Jiang , Shuai Wang
{"title":"An impossible driver for energy justice? Exploring the impact of artificial intelligence on China's energy transition","authors":"Lei Chen , Nana Jiang , Shuai Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114839","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114839","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The contemporary energy transition is driven not only by the imperative to improve energy efficiency in response to environmental constraints but also by concerns over the unequal distribution of benefits and costs within the existing energy system. Departing from traditional efficiency-oriented perspectives, this paper examines the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on just energy transition (JET) for the first time based on provincial-level industrial robot data in China from 2007 to 2017, using Bartik-style instrumental variable causal identification strategy. The empirical results indicate that AI has a negative impact on just energy transition. This conclusion remains valid after IV estimation, a placebo test, and a series of robustness tests. Mechanistic analyses suggest that AI can negatively affect the JET by widening the income gap, weakening the redistributive function of taxation, and increasing the consumption of non-renewable energy sources. By incorporating government governance and human capital into the analytical framework, we find that the impact of AI on the JET is moderated by the quality of government governance and human capital. That is, improvements in government governance and human capital can mitigate the negative impact of AI on the JET. The findings of this study have important theoretical and policy implications, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of AI's impact on the energy transition and informing more effective strategies to manage and adapt to its creative destruction effects.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114839"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144892908","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-25DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114829
Caiqi Bu , Kaixia Zhang
{"title":"Can decentralized energy transition policy achieve a sustainable green transformation of high-energy-consuming firms? Evidence from China","authors":"Caiqi Bu , Kaixia Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114829","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114829","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>As an important contributor to pollution and carbon emission reduction, whether high-energy-consuming firms can successfully realize a sustainable green transition is of great concern. Taking the China's New Energy Demonstration Cities (NEDC) pilot policy for instance, we explore whether the decentralized energy transition policy has driven firms' green transformation towards sustainability. Results suggest that NEDC policy can significantly improve high-energy-consuming firms' green transformation and reducing carbon emissions in the pilot cities. This effect is primarily driven by three key mechanisms: investment and financing, green technology innovation, and energy structure optimization. However, further analysis reveals that the green transformation of high-energy-consuming firms under the NEDC policy is not sustainable in the long run, largely due to the risks of greenwashing and just transition challenges during the transformation process. Additionally, we find that increased government and public concern for the environment and the environmental background of corporate top managers create a synergistic effect with the NEDC policy. This study provides an explanation for why high-energy-consuming firms have not achieved a sustainable green transition as expected, and offers new ideas for the design of energy transition policies from a transition risk perspective.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114829"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895196","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-25DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114838
Hasan Kazak , Mohammad Mafizur Rahman , Ahmet Tayfur Akcan , Halit Buluthan Cetintas , Nezahat Kocyigit , Cuneyt Kilic
{"title":"Performance of green finance: An evaluation of the OIC countries in the scope of 2030 Sustainable Development Goals","authors":"Hasan Kazak , Mohammad Mafizur Rahman , Ahmet Tayfur Akcan , Halit Buluthan Cetintas , Nezahat Kocyigit , Cuneyt Kilic","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114838","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114838","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the role of green finance (GF) in mitigating the carbon ecological footprint (CEF) in the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) during 2000–2022. Employing annual panel data and drawing on a Fourier function-based panel estimation framework, the study examines whether GF can sufficiently minimize environmental pressures and achieve the objectives of sustainable development. Empirical findings indicate that GF is statistically significant and negatively affects CEF, i.e., greater financial resources directed toward green investment help reduce environmental pressures. Furthermore, it is established that economic growth, merchandise exports, and private domestic credit are positively associated with an increase in CEF, suggesting a likely trade-off between economic development and sustainability. The results are robust across different model specifications and underscore the importance of incorporating GF instruments into national and regional policy plans. The paper provides major policy suggestions for OIC members, emphasizing that strengthening GF mechanisms and promoting innovative financial instruments will facilitate progress toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals while minimizing ecological risks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114838"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895197","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-25DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114845
Nguyen Doan , Canh Phuc Nguyen , Thanh Dinh Su
{"title":"Does fiscal decentralization reduce energy poverty? Evidence from Vietnam","authors":"Nguyen Doan , Canh Phuc Nguyen , Thanh Dinh Su","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114845","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114845","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study examines the impact of fiscal decentralization on energy poverty in Vietnam, a country that has experienced significant change over recent decades, with fiscal policy reform, rapid economic growth, and expansion of energy access. We use household- and provincial-level data from 2004 to 2018 and employ different model specifications, including ordinary least squares (OLS) and instrumental variable (IV) estimates and two-step system generalized method of moments (GMM) estimates. Energy poverty is measured using a set of indicators based on income, expenditure, and the quality of energy consumption, while fiscal decentralization is calculated using both narrow and broad definitions of the share of revenue of local governments to total government revenue. We find that fiscal decentralization significantly reduces energy poverty. In particular, OLS estimates show that a one standard deviation increase in fiscal decentralization leads to average decreases in the probability of energy poverty of 0.3–1.3 percentage points at the household level and 0.3 to 1.6 percentage points at the provincial level. The IV estimates are consistent, and the GMM estimates also suggest long-run effects. Strong effects are found in lower-income households in the bottom three income quantiles and poorer regions. These results underline the potential use of fiscal decentralization as a policy tool for addressing energy poverty and emphasize the need for fiscal policy reforms that include the energy sector and account for regional disparities in economic activities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114845"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144893223","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Towards the environmental sustainability path: the role of fintech, renewable energy consumption, and climate policy uncertainty","authors":"Shuanglei Xu , Xiaomeng Zhao , Farhad Taghizadeh-Hesary","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114841","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114841","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Against the intensifying global climate crisis, the triad of fintech, renewable energy consumption, and climate policy uncertainty is becoming a key factor in environmental sustainability. This study selects quarterly data from China from 2005 to 2022. It applies the Nonlinear Autoregressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) model to explore the asymmetric impacts of these three on control carbon intensity (CAI). It is found that (1) Fintech positively impacts the reduction of CAI in both the short and long term; (2) Renewable energy consumption initially increases CAI in the short term, but contributes to decreased CAI in the long term; (3) The climate policy uncertainty similarly exhibits an asymmetric effect on CAI, exacerbating it in the short term and showing uncertainty in the long run. These results highlight the importance of designing stable and predictable climate policies to shape market expectations and encourage low-carbon investments. Policymakers should also leverage fintech to enhance financing mechanisms for renewable energy projects, accelerating the green transition.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114841"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895195","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-23DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114842
Adam Kucharski , Aleksandra Bartosiewicz , Agata Gniadkowska - Szymańska
{"title":"The impact of electricity and fossil fuel prices on electric vehicle new registrations in the European Union","authors":"Adam Kucharski , Aleksandra Bartosiewicz , Agata Gniadkowska - Szymańska","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114842","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114842","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper looks at the main factors influencing the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) in 25 EU countries from 2013 to 2023. It applies fixed- and random-effects panel models to assess how electricity and fossil fuel prices, income levels, public subsidies, and charging infrastructure affect the registration of new battery electric and plug-in hybrid cars. The study distinguishes between Member States that joined the EU before and after 2004 to account for structural differences. The results underscore the crucial role of charging infrastructure, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, where the network remains underdeveloped. With more mature EV markets in Western Europe, fuel price changes have a stronger impact. Financial incentives continue to be an important tool in less wealthy Member States. Electricity and diesel prices on their own explain relatively little. The findings highlight persistent regional differences in electromobility and suggest that policy tools should be better tailored to national circumstances to support a more balanced transformation of the transport sector.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114842"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144892252","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-23DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114836
Jiaming Gao , Li Zhang
{"title":"A differentiated study of the impact of command and market-based environmental regulation on corporate R&D investments —take China's coal power industry chain as an example","authors":"Jiaming Gao , Li Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114836","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114836","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Environmental regulation is an important means for governments to curb environmental pollution and enhance environmental governance, whereas corporate R&D investment determines long-term firm development and fosters technological innovation. To study the differences in the impact of command and market-based environmental regulation policies on corporate R&D investment, this paper uses data from China's coal firms, electric power firms, and environmental protection firms from 2011 to 2022 as a sample and conducts a differentiation analysis using bioinformatics domain methods. It is concluded that: (1) The Environmental Protection Tax Law (EPTL) and the New Environmental Protection Law (NEPL) complement each other in promoting R&D investment by coal and electric power firms. (2) The implementation of the EPTL not only consolidates the position of the NEPL but also encourages firms to invest in R&D. This is achieved through regulating pollution discharge fee standards, reducing local government intervention, intensifying the enforcement power of the NEPL, and increasing government subsidies for environmental protection initiatives. (3) Compared with the NEPL, the EPTL has a greater impact on the R&D investments of coal and electric power firms and demonstrates better timeliness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114836"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144892250","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Energy PolicyPub Date : 2025-08-23DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114808
Karsten Neuhoff , Franziska Klaucke , Luis Olmos , Lisa Ryan , Silvia Vitiello , Anthony Papavasiliou , Konstantin Staschus
{"title":"EU power market reform toward locational pricing: Rewarding flexible consumers for resolving transmission constraints","authors":"Karsten Neuhoff , Franziska Klaucke , Luis Olmos , Lisa Ryan , Silvia Vitiello , Anthony Papavasiliou , Konstantin Staschus","doi":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114808","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114808","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The ongoing expansion of wind and solar electricity generation alongside increasing electrification is leading to a considerable strain on transmission capacities and grid bottlenecks in the EU. Coping with this challenge requires increasing system flexibility, e.g. by exploiting the potential for demand-side flexibility. However, in the current market design, demand-side flexibility responds to zonal price signals rather than local needs. As a result, demand-side flexibility may exacerbate rather than reduce congestion. More local price signals are therefore required. This paper assesses possible reform steps and their viability from the perspective of different market participants and the regulators. It reflects insights from European and international workshops and literature. With respect to reconfiguration of the pricing zones, both a moderate increase of granularity and high increase of granularity preceded by various reform steps are considered. As an alternative, a shift to nodal pricing is assessed. It is proposed that such a reform could be pursued, either by parallel reform steps in tandem across all EU countries, or as a sequential phase-in, preceded by nodal pricing implementation in pilot regions based on a regulatory sandbox approach.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11672,"journal":{"name":"Energy Policy","volume":"207 ","pages":"Article 114808"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144889945","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}