Assessing the impact of energy-saving R&D on China’s energy consumption: Evidence from dynamic spatial panel model

Abstract

Abstract Increasing energy demand has become a cause of significant concern in China. In previous literature, research and development (R&D) activities have been identified as an important factor in determining energy demand. This study narrowed the R&D down to its energy technological level (i.e., energy-saving R&D). In addition, energy-saving R&D can be differentiated according to the players and their purposes, and the existing literature has basically neglected the temporal and spatial characteristics of energy demand. As a result, this empirical study used the spatial dynamic panel model to analyse the role of energy-saving R&D activities in China’s energy demand by classifying them according to those who undertake them and the purposes of the research. The empirical evidence based on China’s provincial dataset over the period 2000–2016 implies that energy-saving R&D has not played a positive role in influencing energy demand. In addition, both the direct and indirect effects are insignificant. However, the energy-saving R&D conducted by enterprises for the purpose of pursuing utility exerts a positive effect on reducing energy demand through both direct and indirect channels. Based on the empirical evidence, some insightful policy implications for China to effectively control energy demand are presented.