Do industrial robots optimize the energy structure? Evidence from fossil energy consumption

This article discusses the impacts and heterogeneity of industrial robots on the energy structures of 62 countries during the period 1993–2014 from the perspective of fossil energy consumption. The robust results show that industrial robots significantly reduce the level of fossil fuel use by improving industrial comparative labor productivity and industrial structure upgrading. This work indicates that industrial robots optimize the energy structures of highly industrialized countries more than they do those of less industrialized countries. Additionally, industrial robots significantly optimize the energy structure in countries with low-level energy consumption but not in countries with high-level energy consumption. The effect of industrial robot applications on energy structure optimization is weaker in high-GDP countries than in low-GDP countries. The influence of industrial robots on improvements in the energy structure is greater in high-tech manufacturing countries than in low-tech manufacturing countries. These results provide an understanding of the changes in energy structure resulting from the application of automation.