Clean energy-based rural domestic energy use transformation: A tripartite evolutionary game model analysis

In the context of China’s dual carbon goals and the continuously rising demand for domestic energy consumption among rural residents, accelerating the transformation of rural household energy use is essential for achieving carbon reduction targets and advancing rural domestic energy transition. With rapid urbanization, rural population outflows and shrinking village sizes have significantly undermined the economic viability of relying solely on large-scale energy infrastructure investments, such as extending natural gas pipeline networks, to meet rural energy needs. Against this backdrop, biomethane, as a renewable energy source, has emerged as a promising solution for rural domestic energy transition. However, the production, deployment, and utilization of biomethane involve multiple stakeholders. Consequently, the effectiveness of biomethane based rural clean energy transition critically depends on coordinated interactions among multiple stakeholders and their dynamic strategic choices over time.