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Harmonizing the cleanliness and economics of energy is an effective means of integrating economic growth with carbon peaking goals, and realizing sustainable development in China. However, due to the existence of the energy trilemma, a worthwhile research question is how to fulfill the carbon peaking commitment while guaranteeing China's stable national development. Based on this, this paper not only discusses the nonlinear relationship between clean energy consumption transition and economic growth through threshold regression, but also simulates several scenarios of energy transition dynamics with different growth rates by using Oracle Crystal Ball software to forecast the future trend of China's carbon emissions up to 2030, aiming to find a transition scenario that can make the peak of carbon emissions appear without significant economic burden, so as to put forward countermeasures and suggestions to avoid falling into the energy trilemma in the process of fulfilling the commitment of carbon peaking. This paper finds that: firstly, there is an inverted U-shaped non-linear relationship between clean energy consumption transition and economic growth, with the inflection point of the inverted U-shape being 0.595; and secondly, only when energy transition exceeds 0.535 in 2030, the peak of carbon emissions (about 12,922.28 Mt) will occur. In summary, this paper argues that China should steadily advance energy transition, avoiding either too fast or too slow a pace (bring clean energy consumption transition to within the 0.535–0.595 range by 2030), in order to secure economic growth while honoring its commitment to peak carbon. Therefore, China should prudently design a coal exit strategy to avoid falling into the energy trilemma when promoting energy transition. Moreover, if China wants to further fulfill its commitment to carbon neutrality by 2060, it needs to continue to deepen the construction of green financial markets in order to better balance the relationship between energy cleanliness and economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The OECD community consumes excessive amounts of raw materials and materials, which leads to pollution and increases the material footprint. The material footprint is directly linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)-8 and 12. The main reason for the material footprint is the usage of fossil fuels, and the dependence of OECD countries on fossil fuels continues to this day. By expanding renewable energy utilization due to rising energy security risk, a community can take steps to improve ecological quality and reduce its material footprint. In this context, the paper focuses to examine the impact of energy security, green innovation, economic policy stringency and income on the fossil fuel material footprint for 24 OECD countries over the period 1995–2018. To this end, the paper uses the Augmented Mean Group (AMG) method and novel Half Panel Jackknife (HPJ) causality and estimation approach. The study adds value to existing knowledge by empirically testing the determinants of fossil fuel material footprint for OECD countries for the first time using the novel HPJ approach. The results of the AMG show that increasing energy security risk index reduces the material footprint, while green innovation and economic policy stringency have no impact on environmental degradation. The environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) in the form of an inverted U and an inverted N are valid for OECD countries. The HPJ approach also illustrates that there is a causality from green innovation and energy security risk to material footprint, and innovation and risk are support footprint reduction. Based on these results, the study recommends that OECD policymakers pay attention to ensuring energy security to reduce the material footprint by expanding renewable resources and allocate more economic resources to green innovations with higher returns, considering the validity of the EKC. [Display omitted] • Applies second-generation panel data methods. • Investigates the fossil fuel material footprint for 24 OECD countries. • The EKC hypothesis holds for the fossil fuel material footprint of OECD countries. • Green innovation and energy security risk reduce fossil fuel material footprint. • Increasing risks and technological development contribute to SDGs 8 and 12. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coordinated operation of concentrating solar power (CSP) and traditional thermal power can facilitate the integration of variable wind and solar renewable energy (VRE) into the grid supported by ultra-high voltage (UHV) transmission line, forming a novel HRES. The optimal sizing of VRE in this novel HRES has been rarely investigated. This paper thus proposed a framework serving the capacity configuration optimization for VRE in aforementioned HRES. The lifecycle economic and technical performance of the HRES was evaluated to guide capacity planning. The operational characteristics of the thermal power and CSP were investigated via short-term scheduling optimization. The methodology was applied to a HRES base located in Qinghai Province, China. Results indicate a maximum capacity ratio of VRE to flexible power of 1.74:1 without power curtailments. Further expansion of VRE leads to an escalation in power curtailments. The optimal VRE sizing is determined as a combination of 4000 MW solar power and 1000 MW wind power, which achieves a levelized cost of energy as low as 0.363 CNY/kWh, corresponding to a capacity factor of 0.32. The role of CSP in mitigating VRE fluctuations in HRES is more significant than that of thermal power due to its superior flexibility and low operating costs. The inter-day heat transfer of CSP can further facilitate the stability of the HRES output between consecutive days. These findings provide valuable insights for capacity configuration and operation of the new HRES, which will promote the utilization of renewable energy and cleaner production of the power system. [Display omitted] • Optimal wind and solar sizing of a novel hybrid power system is researched. • Short-term daily scheduling model of the novel hybrid power system is proposed. • The maximum ratio of VRE to flexible power is 1.74:1 without power curtailment. • The HRES demonstrates a LCOE of 0.363 CNY/kWh under optimal VRE sizing. • Concentrating solar power proves superior flexibility compared to thermal power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The time-varying dynamics of the transition to renewable energy reflect the effectiveness and efficiency of energy policy. This paper investigates renewable energy transition behavior in China using Markov regime-switching models. Two distinct phases, expansion and contraction, are identified based on the growth rates of renewable energy consumption share. We find that since China started its new-energy national strategy in 2005, there has been an extended period in which it has been in the expansion state, although it occasionally reverts to a contraction state. Intriguingly, we uncover that the timing of transition state changes can be explained by the changes in policy-related, market-based instruments and risk-related indexes. These findings present implications for policymakers in developing more precise and effective policies, that drives investment choices to align with the goal of a sustainable energy system. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy poverty has attracted widespread attention from the government and researchers for its close relationship with human well-being and resident health. Estimating the energy poverty line is essential in understanding energy poverty and alleviating it. However, there is no consensus on the measurement of energy poverty. This paper defined the energy poverty line as the threshold at which energy consumption ceases to change significantly as household income increases, which is based on the household minimum energy demand. Considering the environmental endowment in Qinghai, this paper established new scenarios to examine the feasibility of replacing biomass with clean electricity. The findings show that 31.6% of rural households are energy poor in Qinghai. Basic energy demand has been met in Qinghai, but there are difficulties in shifting to a more efficient energy structure. Income, residents' consumption habits and technical issues with clean energy equipment continue to limit the energy choices of rural households. Therefore, improving the actual performance of clean energy devices is critical in the clean energy transition. In addition, local governments can increase incentives for clean energy utilization by setting reasonable subsidies for clean energy. [Display omitted] • Estimating household energy poverty is essential to regional sustainable development. • Defining the energy poverty line based on the minimum energy demand. • The clean energy transition is limited by income and behavioral habits in rural Qinghai. • Technical renovation of clean energy appliances is crucial to solving the energy crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on 196 prefecture-level cities in China from 2006 to 2021, this paper constructs a weight matrix of urban economic geography and uses the spatial differential model to verify the impact of smart city policies on urban green energy efficiency. The results show that the efficiency value of green energy fluctuates in Chinese cities. Different test results show that smart city policies can effectively improve urban green energy efficiency, but mainly from the time effect rather than the individual effect. It means the improvement in urban green energy efficiency comes more from the fast-growing of the Chinese economy and urban construction in this period than from the country's smart city pilot policy. In addition, from the spatial spillover effect result, China needs to design a better urban spatial development plan to improve the capacity of smart city energy services and vigorously develop intelligent technology represented by information and communication science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The operation of solar photovoltaic installations for many years may lead to problems such as reduced energy efficiency and aging of components. Under this framework, replacing certain components in the facility to extend the service life of the power plant is viewed, in some cases, as a feasible strategy. However, despite its enormous strategic interest for the solar PV industry, we find that revamping PV installations has been the focus of very few scientific publications, and even less so when it comes to analyzing real facilities. Thus, this paper performs a techno-economic analysis of three revamping strategies at a real PV power plant located in the south-east of Spain. The strategies consist of substituting, in each case, the PV modules, the inverter, and both components. The simulated results show that the highest production value by installed power is obtained when both the modules and the inverter are replaced. In the same vein, the economic analysis reveals this scenario as the most favorable in terms of profitability. Based on the results obtained, an interesting future line of research would be focused on the extension of the analysis at country level to study the joint impact of numerous revamping actions. • Techno-economic analysis of revamping projects of a real solar PV power plant. • Replacing modules and inverter emerges as the most feasible strategy. • Study's applicability extends to other revamping initiatives and geographical regions. • Economic outcomes allow the most cost-effective alternatives to be determined. • This research can contribute to efficient and sustainable energy planning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the comprehensive progression of China's electric power reform, the participation of hydropower in the spot market has become inevitable. For hydropower-dominated power grids, the tight hydraulic and electric coupling relationship between cascade hydropower plants and the policy requirement of clean energy consumption greatly increase the challenge of optimal scheduling. Based on the market characteristics and actual demand of the hydropower-dominated power grids, this paper discusses the day-ahead spot market trading mechanism to promote the guaranteed consumption of renewable energy. On this basis, a day-ahead optimal scheduling model is established which aims to minimize the comprehensive power purchase cost of the power system. The nonlinear factors in the scheduling model, such as the relationship between the water level and storage capacity of hydropower plants, the relationship between the water level and water consumption rate, and the constraints on the start-up and shutdown durations of thermal power units, are linearized through multiple linearization techniques. The original nonlinear model is transformed into a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) model and is then solved using a CPLEX solver. The developed model is verified by taking 10 thermal power plants and 22 hydropower plants in Yunnan Power Grid as a case study. The calculation time is 183.6s, the comprehensive power purchase cost of the system is 155.35·million CNY, and no abandoned water is generated in the three basins. The simulation results show that the proposed model has high solution accuracy and efficiency, and maximizes the hydropower consumption under the premise of meeting the minimum comprehensive power purchase cost. The findings of this study can provide a scientific basis for the development of the day-ahead spot market of hydropower-dominated power grids. [Display omitted] • A day-ahead spot market trading mechanism to promote consumption of renewable energy. • Day-ahead optimal scheduling of hydropower-dominated power grids under a spot market environment. • A novel MILP approach is employed to solve the model. • Proposed model has high solution accuracy and efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adoption and improvement of energy efficiency is one of the recommended pathways to tackle the problems of growing energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions. However, studies show that rebound effects from energy efficiency improvements can erode anticipated energy savings. This paper elucidates the rebound effect arising from energy efficiency initiatives in Kenya. The study uses Index Decomposition Analysis to assess the drivers of Kenya's total primary energy supply. The paper then adopts the neoclassical growth model in the empirical analysis of energy and carbon rebound effects at the macro-economic level. Cobb-Douglas production function is further applied using Solow growth model and energy as a factor of production to approximate technological progress. Results of decomposition of energy supply show that energy intensity and affluence are the drivers with the most significant effect on energy supply while population has less critical effect. Average energy and carbon rebound effects show partial rebounds of 15.64% and 31.41%, respectively. These results imply that there is need to accelerate the pace of transitioning to green energy as the ultimate solution to minimizing environmental impacts arising from energy use and tackling climate change. • Carbon and energy rebound effects of energy efficiency initiatives is studied. • Decomposition analysis is used to investigate drivers of energy supply. • Energy intensity and affluence have most significant influence on energy supply. • Average estimates of carbon and energy rebound effects are partial rebound effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the nexus between financial expenditures within the Chinese oil business, the volatility of oil prices, and the energy-generating sector. This research examines Chinese oil and energy industry statistics from 1980 to 2020, drawing upon resource curse and energy transition theories. The results of this study are generated by using correlation analysis, quantile process estimation, autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL), and sensitivity analysis. The nexus among variables is seen across all quantiles, ranging from 22% to 81%. On the contrary, a negative association exists between oil price volatility and industrial financial expenditures, with the magnitude of the correlation ranging from 19% to 90%. Significantly, these connections exhibit statistical significance in short-term and long-term scenarios. This paper proposes implications to enhance financial expenditures in the Chinese oil business. These strategies include diversification, hedging via futures contracts and swaps, and short-term forecasts of oil price movements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the critical challenges facing China is environmental pollution caused by insufficient use of clean energy. This paper empirically investigates the impact of rural labor mobility on household clean energy use using data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS). The results indicate that labor mobility significantly promotes the adoption of clean energy by rural households, with income effects and information channel effects serving as the underlying mechanisms. The study also finds that health risks, as an important consideration for household energy use choices, enhance this positive effect. Furthermore, heterogeneity analysis reveals that labor mobility has a greater impact on households with lower levels of education, lack of social security, and those located in central and western regions. Therefore, the government should take measures to increase the income of the rural migrant population and continuously widen the information channels for rural households to promote clean energy use. The findings of this study provide a new perspective and evidence for understanding household energy use behavior in China, offering valuable insights for policymakers aiming to expand the use of clean energy. • Labour mobility significantly contributes to clean energy use in rural households. • Income effects and information channel effects are the main mechanisms of action. • Health risks faced by households play a moderating role. • Heterogeneity in region, educational attainment, social security status will influence the effect of labour mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in energy demand makes it urgent to explore green energy sources. And wind energy is one of the most promising renewable energy sources. In this paper, a rotating hybrid nanogenerator with a combination of a direct-current triboelectric nanogenerator (DC-TENG) and an electromagnetic generator (EMG) is designed; the design concept is to harvest wind energy. First, an optimized ternary DC-TENG is designed based on the ternary dielectric triboelectrification effect. A soft contact structure is designed, which can effectively increase the frictional area as well as reduce the frictional resistance. Then, by introducing the EMG unit, the output power of the device and the speed of charging the capacitor are increased. The high output voltage of the DC-TENG and the high output current of the EMG complement each other to produce excellent power output. At 180 rpm/min, the output power of DC-TENG and EMG can reach 1.78 mW and 215 mW, respectively. With a simple power management circuit design, the device is successfully implemented to power small electronic devices. By charging a suitable capacitor, the device can be used as a power supply to power the sensor. Together with the sensor and power management circuit, it forms a self-powered sensing system that can drive the sensor for continuous operation. This work provides a simple, convenient, and reliable design that offers new insights into energy harvesting in nature. • A ternary dielectric triboelectrification effect triboelectric nanogenerator. • A soft contact structure is designed to minimize frictional resistance. • Introduction of an electromagnetic generator to reduce the capacitor charging time. • Energy supply for the continuous operation of the self-powered sensing systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy is essential for socio-economic development and due to the increase in energy consumption it is necessary to look for renewable and clean energy over the coming decades. Wind energy has received more attention than other sources due to better economic conditions as well as lack of environmental pollution and unlimited wind resources. This paper describes a practical method for measuring the potential of wind resources with the ability to generate electricity, using the geographic information system and considering the selection criteria of wind farms. The present study analyzed a multi-criteria decision support system to define wind energy resources in western Iran. In the method of calculating wind potential in this paper, the desired items are considered with equal importance and these criteria include technical, environmental, economic and geographical factors. The aims of this research are measuring the potential of areas suitable for generating electricity from wind energy for large turbines according to international standards, stating the standards and criteria for measuring the potential of wind resources and finally implementing the items mentioned in regional electricity. The results show that assuming the use of Gamesa G58 turbine, a maximum of 1897 MW of wind power can be generated in the study area, which is 26% of the region's electricity supply in 2025 horizon. The method used in this study can be applied for future wind potential measurements and it is recommended to be integrated with fuzzy AHP method to enhance the accuracy of the results. • Describing a practical method for measuring the potential of wind resources with the ability to generate electricity, using the geographic information system and considering the selection criteria of wind farms. • Measuring the potential of areas suitable for generating electricity from wind energy for large turbines according to international standards. • Obtaining the necessary factors to select suitable locations for wind farms in Iran's Western Regional Electricity in order to provide criteria based on GIS and evaluating their impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing energy demand in harbour areas, coupled with the need to reduce pollutant emissions, has led to the development of renewable energy-based polygeneration systems to face the carbon footprint of ports and ships at berth. In this way, in the coming years, ports can be converted into modern energy hubs. From this point of view, this paper presents a new dynamic simulation model for assessing and optimizing the energy and economic impact of ports. Here, energy systems and renewable sources can be designed to be connected to national electricity and natural gas grids and can include also alternative fuels (hydrogen, biomethane, etc.) and thermal energy networks, as well as different biomass fluxes (to be exploited for energy aims). Energy availability/demands of near towns and port buildings/infrastructures, as well as on-shore power supply are also included in the dynamic assessments. Hourly weather data and different prices for all the considered energy carriers are taken into account hour by hour. A multi-objective optimization approach is also implemented in the model considering energy and economic indexes to be optimized. The whole model is implemented in a computer tool written in MATLAB. For showing the capability of the developed model, a novel case study referred to the port of Naples (South-Italy) is presented. Here, several renewable energy sources are considered, including an anaerobic biodigester for producing biogas from the organic waste of docked cruise ships. A combined heat and power system (fed by biogas) is implemented in the port energy hub also for supplying absorption chillers. PV panels, and marine power generators are also included. In the conducted analysis, optimization targets are the maximization of system self-consumption and self-sufficiency as well as the minimum simple payback period. The proposed system can effectively contribute to the decarbonization of the port energy demand and reduce harmful pollutant emissions. Results showed that very high rate of renewable energy produced on-site can be exploited (up to 84%) by the considered port facilities, ensuring increasing independency from utility power grid (self-sufficiency index up to 40%). By the obtained results and through the developed simulation/optimization tool, novel design and operating criteria can be achieved for future port energy hubs featured by renewables and bi-directional energy exchange between ships and port. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy Internet (EI) is typically characterized by digitalization and clean energy that seeks to revolutionize the energy system and reduce carbon emissions. Even though several scholars conclude that EI accelerates the clean energy transition of energy system, since the controversial relationship between digitalization and energy consumption in academia, current studies on the carbon emission reduction advantages of the EI are still in dispute. This paper employs the effect of EI's construction on the carbon emission peak goal of China's energy system based on the system dynamics model and different scenarios. The simulation results find that: (1) the construction of the EI could enable China's energy system to meet the carbon reduction commitment in 2028, with a carbon emission peak of 11.61 billion tons; (2) As digitalization and clean energy become more extensively employed, rising energy demand is satisfied by the manner of consuming low-carbon electricity energy. This is thought to be the primary factor that could promote China to achieve the carbon peak goal earlier than expected; (3) The advancement of digitalization has further promoted the decoupling of China's economic growth from carbon emissions. It is projected that China's energy system will still achieve the carbon peak goal by 2030 when the expected annual GDP growth rate is increased to 6.32%, 5.75%, and 4.6% for the years 2020–2025, 2026–2030, and 2031–2035, respectively. These findings might provide a new perspective for quantitative research on the environmental outcomes of the EI and the relationship between environmental improvement and economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, China's renewable energy has entered a stage of rapid development. The government gives financial and power-rate subsidies to clean power while putting great support on its construction. However, there is currently a big gap in the government's subsidy on new energy power generation, which is challenging to meet the demand for renewable energy consumption and sustainable development. In this regard, participating in the market is inevitable for renewable energy development, which is significant for promoting renewable energy power consumption and alleviating the subsidy dilemma. Considering the market-based mechanism, this paper regards the electricity market, the tradable green certificate market, and the carbon emissions allowance trading market as an integrated energy platform system that couples carbon emissions with electricity, linking generators and retailers. We consider two scenarios, including green electricity–green certificate separation and unity, and introduce the intermittency of new energy generation to construct the optimal pricing decision for this platform supply chain. We explore the optimal price of tradable green certificate for renewable power and the equilibrium demand for green power and thermal power in two circumstances. The results show that: (1) there is an equilibrium solution in various conditions. Moreover, the optimal price of green certificate in condition two, namely green electricity–green certificate unity, is higher when the on-grid price of green electricity and thermal one and the substitution effect of these two powers satisfy a certain constraint, which can stimulate generator and retailer to generate and consume green electricity as much as possible. (2) The price of carbon emissions and the responsibility weight of renewable electricity consumption both have a positive influence on the optimal price of green certificate and the share of equilibrium demands for green power, whereas intermittency of new energy generation has a negative impact on them. Adjusting the carbon price and incentive responsibility weights and taking relevant measures to reduce intermittency in different situations help to reduce thermal power demand and promote green power consumption. (3) When the prices of green certificates in diverse circumstances are in a certain interval, the impact intensity of changes in green certificate price on electricity demand will arise. It is conducive to performing the facilitative role of green certificate price on the power market better and stimulates the generation and consumption of new energy power in the carbon-electricity coupling market. • Through the carbon-electricity coupling perspective, the optimal TGC price was explored. • Introducing substitution effects of green power and thermal power to analyze optimal TGC prices. • A higher incentive responsibility weight of renewable consumption in scenario two can promote the retailer to consume. • Impact intensity of changes in green certificate price on power demand will arise when the price is in a certain interval. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there have been international frameworks for limiting global warming, however, sustainable actions are not on the same track in terms of speed and scale due to the lack of an explicit pathway. A large strand of the literature has examined the emissions-mitigating effect of R&D expenditure and biofuel energy consumption but in a linear framework and disregarded the factors that cause non-linearity. In that respect, this study aims to offer a new perspective on the asymmetric response of greenhouse gas emissions to government energy R&D expenditure and biofuel use in the United States over the 1981–2020 period using a nonlinear time series approach. The results confirm the asymmetrical relationships between government energy R&D, biofuel use, and greenhouse gas emissions. In the long run, a positive shock in energy R&D expenditure reduces greenhouse gas emissions, while a negative shock increases them. More importantly, the reducing effect of positive shock is more dominant than the enhancing effect of negative shock in energy R&D. Similarly, it is shown that the reducing effect of a positive shock on ethanol consumption on greenhouse gas emissions is stronger than the increasing effect of a negative shock. After the estimations, this paper presents two critical implications, political and practical. (i) The government's energy R&D expenditures and biofuels have an important role in the fight against climate change and the clean energy transformation process. (ii) Researchers should also consider asymmetric effects when examining energy technologies, renewable energy, and environmental issues. • Examines the greenhouse gas emissions response to government energy R&D expenditures and bioethanol consumption in the US. • Follows an asymmetric and non-linear method. • Confirms the asymmetrical relationships between energy R&D, bioethanol, and greenhouse gas emissions. • Provides implications for environmental quality and the clean energy transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limiting the impact of human use of energy on the environment is necessary to maintain the Earth's ecosystems such that they can continue to provide the ecosystem services on which humans and all other living organisms depend. Because the methods available to limit the impact on the environment of energy production and use require energy, energy used for this purpose—termed ecosystem maintenance energy (ESME)—reduces the net energy available. A capacity to estimate the energy that can be produced while sustaining ecosystem services, termed green energy, is critical to future energy use. This paper sets out a method to determine ESME by assigning energy consumption to the processes needed to remove the source of the impact on the ecosystem that results from the energy system lifecycle. We illustrate the method by the use of a case study based on a concentrated solar power plant (CSP) with natural gas back up. Green energy production is assessed in terms of the green energy return on energy invested, EROIg. CSP ecosystem impact is determined via a lifecycle assessment of the plant's operations for varying degrees of natural gas back-up. ESME is then determined by calculating the energy consumption of the impact source removal (ISR) process needed to remove the ecosystem impact. We show that, although the CSP plant produces increasing amounts of net energy with increasing natural gas back-up, the capacity to produce net green energy reduces with increasing natural gas back-up once ESME is included. For the CSP plant examined, EROI increases, while EROIg decreases for increasing use of natural gas. This indicates the large impact of ESME on the plant's energy return and the necessity of its inclusion in energy assessments. • Ecosystem maintenance energy (ESME) should be counted as energy cost. • For green energy production, EROI is greatly affected by ESME. • Even renewable energies have large ESME costs affecting their EROIg. • ESME is computed using the ISR energy associated with the lifecycle impact. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the downward pressure of the economy, China's extensive economic growth that relies on factor input is difficult to sustain. Scientific analysis of the industrial restructuring and energy consumption has become the key to realizing China's economic growth from high-speed to high-quality. Based on the fully-modified least square method and panel vector error correction model, this paper explores the equilibrium relationship and Granger causality among the industrial restructuring, energy consumption and economic growth at aggregated and disaggregated levels. The results show that: (1) The effect of industrial structure rationalization on economic growth is higher than that of industrial structure upgrading. When emphasizing industrial structure upgrade, the more reliable industrial policy to achieve China's sustainable economic growth is to pay attention to the industrial structure rationalization, especially in western China. (2) The impacts of natural gas and renewable energy consumption on economic growth are much smaller than coal and electricity consumption; more energy policies should be designed to encourage clean energy development. • The industrial structure rationalization has highest contribution to the economic growth of eastern China, followed by central and western China. • There exists unidirectional causality from industrial structure upgrading to structure rationalizing in western China and bidirectional causality between them in central China. • Effects of natural gas and renewable energy consumption on economic growth are much smaller than coal and electricity consumption. • Unidirectional long-term causality from renewable energy to economic growth exist in each sub-region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global energy interconnection (GEI) is vital for countries to achieve clean energy production and carbon neutrality. To improve the construction efficiency of GEI projects, capital allocation efficiency and its driving factors must be analyzed. Therefore, this study uses a three-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) model to evaluate the capital allocation efficiency of 161 countries. The results demonstrate that there is spatial heterogeneity in global capital allocation efficiency and that most countries have low levels of efficiency. The average pure efficiency is 0.364 and the average scale efficiency is only 0.176. To determine the fastest possible method of improving efficiency in different countries, this paper combined an adjusted three-stage DEA model with a geographically weighted regression (GWR) model to quantify the driving factors of capital allocation efficiency. The level of economic development is the main driving factor, whereas government support has the least influence on capital allocation efficiency. Furthermore, the coefficients of the influence of each driving factor vary significantly across different regions. In conclusion, this study quantitatively estimates the efficiency of capital allocation for GEI projects and explores the key driving factors of efficiency from the perspective of heterogeneity, and makes targeted recommendations for countries to improve efficiency. • Environmental variables generally masks the inefficiency of GEI capital allocation. • The average pure efficiency is 0.364 and the average scale efficiency is only 0.176. • Capital allocation efficiency are spatially correlated globally. • The economic development level is the main driving factor of capital allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing global consumption of energy and its negative impacts on the environment has been an issue discussed both by academics and practitioners, including in the health sector. Hospitals are major consumers of energy, which leads to increased operating costs, decreased competitiveness, and negative environmental impacts. Energy management in hospitals must be understood as a way to contribute to environmental sustainability and as a way to improve competitiveness. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to propose guidelines for efficient and sustainable energy management in hospitals, developed based on the literature review, the challenges faced and the good practices of sustainable energy management in the hospitals studied, the cross analysis of the case studies, and the authors' expertise. As a result, the eight proposed guidelines are related to culture change, energy consumption management, energy management standard, purchase of renewable energy, green technologies, sustainable hospital buildings, social responsibility programs focused on energy use, and sustainable energy public policies. These guidelines contribute in an applied/managerial way to help managers of public and private hospitals overcome the challenges of energy management and contribute to UN's SDG7 due to its potential to improve energy efficiency and environmental performance, therefore, being a movement towards clean energy. This study also theoretically/scientifically contributes to the academic debate since the empirical findings found in the hospitals studied and the proposition of guidelines deepen and expand the key elements identified in the literature on efficient energy management in hospitals, providing the basis for developing new research on the subject. Energy management in hospitals is discussed from the perspective of sustainability. Challenges need to be overcome for sustainability benefits to be achieved. This work can assist public and private hospitals in developing sustainability. Guidelines for sustainable energy management in hospitals are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]