IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/rensus/v146y2021ics136403212100424x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Biased technological progress and total factor productivity growth: From the perspective of China's renewable energy industry

Author

Listed:
  • Zhen, Wang
  • Xin-gang, Zhao
  • Ying, Zhou

Abstract

With the decline in the intensity of subsidy policies, technological progress has become a critical factor in promoting the renewable energy industry's sustainable development. This paper estimates the direction and extent of biased technological progress in China's renewable energy industry from 2009 to 2018. On this basis, by constructing an accounting model for the growth rate of total factor productivity (TFP), this paper empirically analyzes the effects of different factors on TFP growth. The research results indicate that: (1) The TFP of China's renewable energy industry has dropped by 4.60% annually, and the growth of industrial output mainly relied on factor input rather than technological progress. (2) The technological progress and factor allocation of China's renewable energy industry generally show a bias towards the capital. At different stages of the industry's development, it presents different degrees of bias. (3) Technological progress is biased towards capital factor with a lower growth rate of factor efficiency, which hinders the growth of TFP in the renewable energy industry.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhen, Wang & Xin-gang, Zhao & Ying, Zhou, 2021. "Biased technological progress and total factor productivity growth: From the perspective of China's renewable energy industry," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:146:y:2021:i:c:s136403212100424x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2021.111136
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136403212100424X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.rser.2021.111136?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lin, Boqiang & Chen, Yufang, 2019. "Does electricity price matter for innovation in renewable energy technologies in China?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 259-266.
    2. Ulrich Doraszelski & Jordi Jaumandreu, 2018. "Measuring the Bias of Technological Change," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 126(3), pages 1027-1084.
    3. Daron Acemoglu & Philippe Aghion & Fabrizio Zilibotti, 2006. "Distance to Frontier, Selection, and Economic Growth," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 4(1), pages 37-74, March.
    4. Liu, Wenfeng & Zhang, Xingping & Feng, Sida, 2019. "Does renewable energy policy work? Evidence from a panel data analysis," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 635-642.
    5. Cristiano Antonelli & Francesco Quatraro, 2010. "The effects of biased technological change on total factor productivity: empirical evidence from a sample of OECD countries," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 35(4), pages 361-383, August.
    6. Ming, Zeng & Ximei, Liu & Yulong, Li & Lilin, Peng, 2014. "Review of renewable energy investment and financing in China: Status, mode, issues and countermeasures," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 23-37.
    7. Daron Acemoglu, 2002. "Directed Technical Change," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 69(4), pages 781-809.
    8. Zhang, Sufang & Andrews-Speed, Philip & Zhao, Xiaoli & He, Yongxiu, 2013. "Interactions between renewable energy policy and renewable energy industrial policy: A critical analysis of China's policy approach to renewable energies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 342-353.
    9. Olivier de La Grandville & Rainer Klump, 2000. "Economic Growth and the Elasticity of Substitution: Two Theorems and Some Suggestions," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(1), pages 282-291, March.
    10. Rainer Klump & Peter McAdam & Alpo Willman, 2012. "The Normalized Ces Production Function: Theory And Empirics," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(5), pages 769-799, December.
    11. Edward K.Y. Chen, 1997. "The Total Factor Productivity Debate: Determinants of Economic Growth in East Asia," Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, The Crawford School, The Australian National University, vol. 11(1), pages 18-38, May.
    12. Antonelli, Cristiano, 2016. "Technological congruence and the economic complexity of technological change," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 15-24.
    13. Gong, Byeong-Ho & Sickles, Robin C., 1992. "Finite sample evidence on the performance of stochastic frontiers and data envelopment analysis using panel data," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 51(1-2), pages 259-284.
    14. Miguel A. León-Ledesma & Peter McAdam & Alpo Willman, 2010. "Identifying the Elasticity of Substitution with Biased Technical Change," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1330-1357, September.
    15. Fang, Kai & Zhou, Yunheng & Wang, Shuang & Ye, Ruike & Guo, Sujian, 2018. "Assessing national renewable energy competitiveness of the G20: A revised Porter's Diamond Model," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 719-731.
    16. Zeng, Shihong & Jiang, Chunxia & Ma, Chen & Su, Bin, 2018. "Investment efficiency of the new energy industry in China," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 536-544.
    17. Rainer Klump & Peter McAdam & Alpo Willman, 2007. "Factor Substitution and Factor-Augmenting Technical Progress in the United States: A Normalized Supply-Side System Approach," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 89(1), pages 183-192, February.
    18. Mallick, Debdulal, 2012. "The role of the elasticity of substitution in economic growth: A cross-country investigation," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 19(5), pages 682-694.
    19. Christophe Feder, 2018. "A measure of total factor productivity with biased technological change," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(3), pages 243-253, April.
    20. Böhringer, Christoph & Keller, Andreas & van der Werf, Edwin, 2013. "Are green hopes too rosy? Employment and welfare impacts of renewable energy promotion," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 277-285.
    21. Kumbhakar,Subal C. & Lovell,C. A. Knox, 2003. "Stochastic Frontier Analysis," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521666633.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hao, Yu & Guo, Yunxia & Li, Suixin & Luo, Shiyue & Jiang, Xueting & Shen, Zhiyang & Wu, Haitao, 2022. "Towards achieving the sustainable development goal of industry: How does industrial agglomeration affect air pollution?," Innovation and Green Development, Elsevier, vol. 1(1).
    2. Ma, Qiang & Li, Sa & Aslam, Misbah & Ali, Naveed & Alamri, Ahmad Mohammed, 2023. "Extraction of natural resources and sustainable renewable energy: COP26 target in the context of financial inclusion," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    3. Juan Qian & Ruibing Ji, 2022. "Impact of Energy-Biased Technological Progress on Inclusive Green Growth," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-24, December.
    4. Saulius Baskutis & Jolanta Baskutiene & Valentinas Navickas & Yuriy Bilan & Wojciech Cieśliński, 2021. "Perspectives and Problems of Using Renewable Energy Sources and Implementation of Local “Green” Initiatives: A Regional Assessment," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-16, September.
    5. Lee, Chien-Chiang & Yuan, Zihao & Lee, Chi-Chuan & Chang, Yu-Fang, 2022. "The impact of renewable energy technology innovation on energy poverty: Does climate risk matter?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    6. Djula Borozan & Dubravka Pekanov Starcevic, 2021. "Analysing the Pattern of Productivity Change in the European Energy Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-14, October.
    7. Lei, Xuanang & Lin, Yujun & Yang, Qiufan & Zhou, Jianyu & Chen, Xia & Wen, Jinyu, 2022. "Research on coordinated control of renewable-energy-based Heat-Power station system," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 324(C).
    8. Yuxuan Xu & Jie Lyu & Ying Xue & Hongbin Liu, 2022. "Does the Agricultural Productive Service Embedded Affect Farmers’ Family Economic Welfare Enhancement? An Empirical Analysis in Black Soil Region in China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-22, November.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Michael Knoblach & Fabian Stöckl, 2020. "What Determines The Elasticity Of Substitution Between Capital And Labor? A Literature Review," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 34(4), pages 847-875, September.
    2. Knoblach, Michael & Rößler, Martin & Zwerschke, Patrick, 2016. "The Elasticity of Factor Substitution Between Capital and Labor in the U.S. Economy: A Meta-Regression Analysis," CEPIE Working Papers 03/16, Technische Universität Dresden, Center of Public and International Economics (CEPIE).
    3. Juan Qian & Ruibing Ji, 2022. "Impact of Energy-Biased Technological Progress on Inclusive Green Growth," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-24, December.
    4. Gerald Daniels & Venoo Kakar, 2017. "Economic Growth and the CES Production Function with Human Capital," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 37(2), pages 930-951.
    5. Neil Rankin & Rulof Burger & Friedrich Kreuser, 2015. "The elasticity of substitution and labour-displacing technical change in post-apartheid South Africa," WIDER Working Paper Series 101, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    6. Song, Eunbi, 2021. "What drives labor share change? Evidence from Korean industries," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 370-385.
    7. Robert Z. Lawrence, 2015. "Recent Declines in Labor's Share in US Income: A Preliminary Neoclassical Account," Working Paper Series WP15-10, Peterson Institute for International Economics.
    8. Ara Jo, 2020. "The Elasticity of Substitution between Clean and Dirty Energy with Technological Bias," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 20/344, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    9. Jan Trenczek & Konstantin M. Wacker, 2023. "Accounting for cross-country output differences: A sectoral CES perspective," Working Papers 2023.09, International Network for Economic Research - INFER.
    10. repec:ebl:ecbull:eb-17-00354 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Robert S. Chirinko & Debdulal Mallick, 2014. "The Substitution Elasticity, Factor Shares, Long-Run Growth, and the Low-Frequency Panel Model," CESifo Working Paper Series 4895, CESifo.
    12. Dongya Koh & Raül Santaeulàlia-Llopis, 2017. "Countercyclical Elasticity of Substitution," Working Papers 946, Barcelona School of Economics.
    13. Trenczek, Jan & Wacker, Konstantin M., 2023. "Human Capital Misallocation and Output per Worker Differences: Beyond Cobb-Douglas," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1331, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    14. Growiec, Jakub, 2018. "Factor-specific technology choice," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 1-14.
    15. Akaev, Askar & Devezas, Tessaleno & Ichkitidze, Yuri & Sarygulov, Askar, 2021. "Forecasting the labor intensity and labor income share for G7 countries in the digital age," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    16. Sebastian Gechert & Tomas Havranek & Zuzana Irsova & Dominika Kolcunova, 2022. "Measuring Capital-Labor Substitution: The Importance of Method Choices and Publication Bias," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 45, pages 55-82, July.
    17. Federici, Daniela & Saltari, Enrico, 2018. "Elasticity Of Substitution And Technical Progress: Is There A Misspecification Problem?," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 22(1), pages 101-121, January.
    18. Cristiano Cantore & Miguel León-Ledesma & Peter McAdam & Alpo Willman, 2014. "Shocking Stuff: Technology, Hours, And Factor Substitution," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 12(1), pages 108-128, February.
    19. Zha, Donglan & Kavuri, Anil Savio & Si, Songjian, 2018. "Energy-biased technical change in the Chinese industrial sector with CES production functions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 896-903.
    20. Growiec, Jakub & Mućk, Jakub, 2020. "Isoelastic Elasticity Of Substitution Production Functions," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 24(7), pages 1597-1634, October.
    21. Kemnitz, Alexander & Knoblach, Michael, 2020. "Endogenous sigma-augmenting technological change: An R&D-based approach," CEPIE Working Papers 02/20, Technische Universität Dresden, Center of Public and International Economics (CEPIE).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:rensus:v:146:y:2021:i:c:s136403212100424x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/600126/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.