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Greener together: The impact of China's mixed-ownership reform on firm carbon emissions

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  • Yu, Lu
  • Liu, Yinwei
  • Niu, Yiran
  • Xiao, Zumian

Abstract

This research delves into the impact of mixed-ownership reform on carbon dioxide emissions within State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), leveraging Propensity Score Matching (PSM) and Difference-in-Difference (DID) estimation methodologies. The results gleaned from our study evince that the adoption of mixed-ownership reform in China's SOEs facilitates a notable reduction in carbon emissions. Our mechanism analysis elucidates that the substitution of clean energy plays a significant role in enabling mixed-ownership reform to foster corporate carbon emission reduction. Intriguingly, our evidence reveals that the influence of mixed-ownership reform is more pronounced in curtailing carbon emissions of large-scale enterprises. Conversely, this reform appears less effective in constraining the augmentation of carbon emissions in small and medium-sized enterprises. The robustness of our findings is further buttressed by the application of alternative matching methods and results derived from the placebo test.

Suggested Citation

  • Yu, Lu & Liu, Yinwei & Niu, Yiran & Xiao, Zumian, 2023. "Greener together: The impact of China's mixed-ownership reform on firm carbon emissions," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 180(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:180:y:2023:i:c:s0301421523002744
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113689
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Mixed-ownership reform; Carbon emissions; Energy substitution; Energy consumption structure;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • P11 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Planning, Coordination, and Reform
    • P14 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Capitalist Economies - - - Property Rights
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

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