• Energy Research

Considering the important role of energy in modern society, it is imperative to study the current situation and future development of energy under the influence of COVID-19. This paper identifies the current research hotspots, proposes future research directions accordingly, and summarizes the methodologies via a bibliometric analysis. Five research hotspots include COVID-19 and the changes of energy consumption, COVID-19 and the fluctuation of the energy market, COVID-19 and the development of renewable energy, COVID-19 and climate impacts caused by energy consumption, and COVID-19 and the energy policy. According to the influence mechanism of COVID-19 on each hotspot, the pandemic has exerted short-term influencs on energy consumption, energy price, and air pollution. Meanwhile, the pandemic could have a far-reaching impact on the renewable energy sector, climate, and energy policy. In addition, the main methodologies are reviewed, revealing that regression analysis and scenario analysis are commonly used as the quantitative and qualitative methods, respectively. Moreover, given the nonlinear relations between the pandemic and energy, an artificial neural networks model is used to enhance the prediction efficiency of energy demand and price. Finally, policy implications for obtaining clean, low-carbon, safe, and efficient energy in the context of COVID-19 are proposed.

Rising temperatures are likely to boost residential demand for electricity in warm locations for reasons including increased use of air conditioners, fans, and refrigeration. Yet precise effects may vary by geographical area and with socio-economic conditions. Knowledge on these effects in developing countries is limited due to data availability and reliability issues. Using a high-quality provincial-level monthly dataset for China and fixed-effect panel methods, we find a U-shaped and asymmetrical relationship between ambient temperature and monthly residential electricity use. An additional day with a maximum temperature exceeding 34 °C is on average associated with a 1.6% increase in that month’s per capita residential electricity use relative to if that day’s maximum temperature had been in the 22–26 °C range. The effect of an additional cold day is smaller. There are differences in effects for the south versus the north of China and for urban versus rural areas. Under a high global carbon dioxide emission trajectory, we estimate that expected temperature increases would lead to more than a 25% increase in residential electricity use in July in some provinces by the end of the century, holding other factors constant ; This work was supported by funding from the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (No. 71925008).

Abstract Technical innovations in vehicles continually influence the transportation transition. Autonomous vehicles (AVs) are one of the innovations. Connected and electric vehicle technologies are considered to be the development directions of AVs. This paper aims to understand consumer attitudes towards autonomous, connected, and electric vehicles (ACEVs), using data collected through a survey in China. The results indicate that respondents found the potential for environmental-friendly transport, increased accessibility of travel for non-drivers, and reduced driving fatigue as the most attractive aspects of ACEVs. Conversely, respondents were most concerned about vehicle safety, legal liability, and charging issues. It is implicated that battery service life, driving mileage, and charging are prominent barriers to the adoption of ACEVs. The perceived benefits and related infrastructure improvements show positive effects on respondents’ willingness to adopt ACEVs, while concerns and cost reduce their appeal.

The existing oil import dependence index cannot exactly measure the economic cost or scales, and it is difficult to describe the economical aspect of oil security. To measure the foreign dependence of one country’s economy and reflect its oil economic security, this paper defines the net oil import intensity as the ratio of net oil import cost to GDP. By using Divisia Index Decomposition, the change of net oil import intensity in five industrialized countries and five newly industrialized countries during 1971–2010 is decomposed into five factors: oil price, oil intensity, oil self-sufficiency, domestic price level and exchange rate. The result shows that the dominating factors are oil price and oil intensity; moreover, the newly industrialized countries have higher net oil import intensity than industrialized countries.

Abstract China's residential sector has experienced rapid electrification and gasification. Among rural households, however, coal still accounts for a large share of energy use, especially in the north. Use of coal for cooking and heating brings large health and pollution risks. From a theoretical viewpoint, economic tools such as taxes and subsidies have the potential to play a crucial role in addressing this issue. In this paper, a provincial-level dataset is used to estimate the price and income elasticities of aggregate coal demand by rural households. We find that coal is a non-Giffen inferior good for the rural household sector. This means that future income growth may help to induce switching from coal. Demand is becoming more price elastic as rural incomes grow. We also find that rural residential coal demand is more price- and income-responsive in the south than the north, perhaps because of fewer substitution options in the north. Our results provide benchmarks and parameters for policy simulation research.

Abstract There about 490 million rural residents in China use solid fuels for cooking. Based on national population census data, this research evaluates the current situation and long-term trend of solid fuel use for cooking in rural China. Firstly, over three-fourths of all rural households depend on solid fuels to meet their cooking demand, while in urban area and township this figure is as low as 8% and 36% respectively. Secondly, solid fuel use was linked closely to rural household income, i.e., those regions with low per capita household income use more solid fuel. Furthermore, the proportion of rural households using solid fuel declined 17 percentage points in 2000-2010, albeit with some significant regional differences. Finally, the proportion of rural residents using clean fuels remained low, and the proportion using gas remained nearly constant over last 10 years in many provinces.

Abstract China's total energy consumption, according to the official data, decreased impressively during 1997–1998 and increased sharply during 2003–2007, which in turn resulted in energy intensity fluctuation. Many literatures explained this “unusual phenomenon” from the perspectives of technical change, economic structure shifting and statistical data quality. They measured aggregate energy in thermal units by using linear summation approaches. In this paper, from the perspectives of heterogeneity and imperfect substitutability among diverse energy types, we further examine China's aggregate energy consumption by using Divisia (Sato-Vartia) approach. The results show that China's aggregate energy consumption and intensity fluctuated slightly less than values calculated by using conventional linear approaches, and the “unusual phenomenon” is partly explained. It also implies that China's energy intensity changes in 2006–2007 are slightly more optimistic than those officially reported, and the official communique of provincial energy intensity reduction achievements are partly bias. Some provincial achievement are underestimated or overestimated on some provinces. Our empirical results are also helpful to further research, such as energy–economic modeling, energy price elasticity, and elasticity of substitution among capital–labor–energy–material (KLEM). The difficulties or defects when using Divisia approach are also discussed in this paper.

Abstract This study aims to investigate the nexus of per capita carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, per capita gross domestic product (GDP), and per capita natural gas consumption by examining the validity of the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis and analyzing the effectiveness of natural gas consumption for a panel of 14 Asia-Pacific countries for 1970–2016. To do so, a Granger causality framework covering panel unit root, cointegration, estimation, and causality tests allowing for cross-sectional dependence is employed. The main findings are: (i) The augmented mean group (AMG) estimates provide strong evidence in favor of the EKC hypothesis as the EKC holds in 13 of the 14 countries; the EKC exists independent of the individual country's per capita GDP; (ii) the turning points (TPs) lie between $1937.23 (Bangladesh) and $58,235.90 (Australia), while the turning years (TYs) are estimated to stay between 2019 (Australia) and 2048 (Bangladesh); per capita GDP positively and negatively affects the TPs and TYs, respectively; (iii) natural gas consumption has a significantly negative effect on CO2 emissions; the significantly negative effect of natural gas consumption on CO2 emissions is also independent of per capita GDP but, conversely, may be affected by the proportion of natural gas in the primary energy mix; and (iv) bidirectional causality runs between natural gas consumption and CO2 emissions in both the short run and long run. Important policy implications are highlighted for Asia-Pacific countries’ policymakers with respect to halting global warming and promoting growth in the natural gas industry.