|
|
|
Abstract Climate change has become a serious challenge threatening China’s sustainable economic development. Accelerating energy transformation and upgrading is not only a major strategic direction for achieving the goals of carbon peak and carbon neutrality, but also a key measure to build a modern energy system and solve the problem of environmental degradation. However, even though the energy reform measures implemented in the past have produced significant results, China’s energy transition still faces energy structure constraints and pressure to improve efficiency. Particularly problems such as distorted urban spatial layout and excessive population concentration caused by traditional urbanization
have seriously restricted urban energy transformation. Given that regional integrated urbanization (urban
agglomeration) is necessary to promote new urbanization and regional coordinated development under
the new development pattern, this article conducts a detailed analysis of the relationship between urban agglomeration construction and urban energy transformation.In theory, on the one hand, the construction of urban agglomerations can form an integrated spatial network among cities, fully utilize the spatial scope and market size, reduce matching, coordination,transaction and production costs, and directly promote regional energy transformation. On the other
hand, the integrated development of urban agglomerations can optimize the organizational structure and
knowledge division of labor network within the agglomerations, improve the level of knowledge diffusion
and industrial linkage, and indirectly promote urban energy transformation by playing the effects of
structural upgrading, technological innovation and resource allocation. In addition, the construction of urban agglomerations tends to form central areas with developmental and radiation functions, which radiate and diffuse capital, labor, talents and other developmental factors to the peripheral areas, affecting the energy transition of the neighboring areas.
In the empirical, based on the panel data of prefecture-level cities in China from 2003 to 2019, focusing
on the evolution characteristics of regional economic integration, this paper uses a double difference
model to examine the impact of urban agglomeration construction on urban energy transformation. It is
found that the urban agglomeration construction helps to promote urban energy transformation, and
plays a more significant role in stable and mature urban agglomerations urban agglomeration, urban
agglomeration with strong environmental regulation, backward industrial structure and medium and large urban agglomeration. Mechanistic analysis shows that the urban agglomeration construction helps
to optimize the industrial structure of each city and promote the upgrading of industrial structure;
strengthen urban knowledge sharing and technology spillover, narrow the technological innovation gap
between cities in urban agglomeration, and enhance the strength of technological innovation of urban
agglomeration; improve the efficiency of resource flow and allocation, reduce factor market distortions,
and ultimately promote urban energy transformation. Further analysis shows that the urban agglomeration
construction can also strengthen the spillover capacity of the development pole of core cities and
significantly drive the energy transition in neighboring cities.
The paper’s innovation lies in the following aspects: Firstly, it incorporates urban agglomerations
and urban energy transformation into the analytical framework and systematically sorts out the theoretical
mechanism and impact path of the impact of urban agglomeration construction on energy transformation,
thereby expanding the research boundary of urban agglomeration integration and energy transformation
issues. Secondly, this paper innovatively constructs and measures the China Urban Energy Transformation
Index using the more authoritative and comprehensive method of the World Economic Forum, thus
compensating for the singularity and bias of the traditional energy transition indicators, and providing a
new foundational data support for understanding the energy transition of Chinese cities. Finally, it
further explores the spatial spillover effects of urban agglomeration construction on energy transformation,
providing policy guidance and directional direction for actively accelerating the formation of a linkage
mechanism for coordinating the economic integration construction of urban agglomerations
with the national energy strategy.
|
|
Published: 24 February 2026
|
|
|
|
|
|
