Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
8.3
3.9
Journals
Energies
Special Issues
Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future
energies-logo
Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Energies Propose a Special Issue

Journal Menu

► Journal Menu

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser
share announcement

Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "C: Energy Economics and Policy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2026 | Viewed by 1532

Editors

Prof. Dr. Yu Song

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Business, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau 999078, China
Interests: regional economics; energy economics; banking and finance
Dr. Tao Shen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
The Institute for Sustainable Development, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau 999078, China
Interests: regional economics; energy economics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Guest Editor is inviting submissions to a special issue of energies on the subject area of “Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future”.

Under the dual challenges of global climate change and energy security, the synergistic innovation between energy transition and economic policies has emerged as a central issue in achieving a low-carbon future. To foster academic exchange and policy practice, the special issue now invites submissions from scholars, policymakers, and industry experts worldwide.

This special issue aims to integrate interdisciplinary research, exploring economic policy instruments for energy system transformation, implementation pathways, and societal impacts, thereby providing theoretical foundations and practical insights for low-carbon development.

Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • All related researchon energy transition and economic policies;
  • Carbon pricing mechanism;
  • Cross-departmental policy coordination;
  • Energy industry linkages and pathways;
  • Financial incentives and subsidies;
  • Green financial instruments;
  • Input output model and energy transition and economic policies;
  • Regional and global cooperation;
  • Social network analysis and energy transition;
  • Sustainable energy;
  • Technological innovation andpolicy adaptation;
  • Water resource transfer mechanism.

Waste pollution transmission path and treatment. 

Prof. Dr. Yu Song
Dr. Tao Shen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • carbon pricing
  • economic policies
  • energy transition
  • energy and environment
  • linkages
  • modelling
  • pollution management
  • waste management
  • water resource transition

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

47 pages, 1458 KB  
Article
From “Physical Expansion” to “Human Development”: Regional IP Strong Chain, Deep Synergy of Investment in Physical and Human Capital, and Energy Green Controllability
by Yi Wang, Luyan Zhou and Kun Lv
Energies 2026, 19(14), 3267; https://doi.org/10.3390/en19143267 - 10 Jul 2026
Viewed by 181
Abstract
The fundamental dilemma of energy transition lies in whether an economy can guide its energy system to break free from deep dependence on fossil fuels in a sustained and orderly manner. This requires not only institutional incentives for innovation but also, more critically, [...] Read more.
The fundamental dilemma of energy transition lies in whether an economy can guide its energy system to break free from deep dependence on fossil fuels in a sustained and orderly manner. This requires not only institutional incentives for innovation but also, more critically, a social-level shift in focus from “physical expansion” to “human development.” This paper incorporates these two conditions into a unified causal framework. Taking the pilot program for the construction of IP-strong provinces in China launched in 2016 as a quasi-natural experiment, and using panel data from 30 provincial-level administrative regions in China over the period 2010–2022, this study employs the Spatial Durbin Difference-in-Differences (SDM-DID) model and the Double Machine Learning (DML) method to examine the joint impacts and transmission mechanisms of the regional IP strong chain and the deep synergy between investment in physical capital and investment in human capital on energy green controllability. The findings are as follows. First, both the IP strong chain and deep synergy significantly improve energy green controllability. The local effect of deep synergy is far greater than the direct effect of the IP system itself, making it the core structural force driving the green transition. Second, the institutional dividend of the IP strong chain generates positive spatial spillovers to neighboring regions through the patent information disclosure channel. In contrast, the spatial spillovers of deep synergy are obstructed by administrative barriers and fiscal boundaries. Third, deep synergy plays a significant partial mediating role in the process through which the IP strong chain affects energy green controllability, with more than one-third of the total policy effect being released through this channel. Fourth, a path-wise test reveals a notable structural difference: the human capital investment path significantly outperforms the physical capital investment path in terms of transmission efficiency and robustness. This indicates that, at the current stage, the institutional effectiveness of the IP system in driving the green transition is largely achieved by improving the quality, capacity, and security level of human capital, rather than by restructuring the physical capital stock. The above conclusions remain robust after replacing the machine learning algorithm, adjusting the sample split ratio, and excluding the interference of concurrent competitive policies. This paper reveals the complete causal chain through which institutional public goods are transmitted to system governance capacity via the factor allocation structure, providing new empirical evidence for understanding the deep-seated relationship between intellectual property governance and the energy transition. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

24 pages, 602 KB  
Article
R&D Tax Deduction Intensity and Patent-Based Low-Carbon Innovation in Photovoltaic Firms: Structural and Conditional Evidence from China
by Zhengyang Luan, Hsing Hung Chen, Ruofei Lan and Chen Song
Energies 2026, 19(14), 3251; https://doi.org/10.3390/en19143251 - 10 Jul 2026
Viewed by 206
Abstract
Under the growing pressures of climate change and low-carbon transition, economic policy instruments play an important role in shaping technological innovation in renewable energy industries. This study examines the association between research and development (R&D) tax deduction intensity and patent-based low-carbon innovation among [...] Read more.
Under the growing pressures of climate change and low-carbon transition, economic policy instruments play an important role in shaping technological innovation in renewable energy industries. This study examines the association between research and development (R&D) tax deduction intensity and patent-based low-carbon innovation among Chinese photovoltaic firms. Using a panel of 71 Chinese A-share listed photovoltaic firms during 2019–2024 and two-way fixed effects models, we find no stable association between R&D tax deduction intensity and firms’ overall innovation output. However, after distinguishing innovation types, R&D tax deduction intensity is positively associated with radical innovation output and negatively associated with incremental innovation output, indicating that R&D tax deduction intensity leads to a structural reallocation of innovation resources rather than a simple expansion of innovation quantity. Further results suggest that financing constraints and the external government subsidy intensity shape the marginal effect of R&D tax deduction intensity. Financing constraints exhibit a relatively stable moderating role, while the effect of the government subsidy intensity becomes more evident when firm financing conditions are jointly considered. These findings highlight the need to evaluate energy-transition policies not only by aggregate innovation output, but also by innovation structure, firm heterogeneity, and complementary policy environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

28 pages, 1114 KB  
Article
Multi-Dimensional Effect Analysis of Policy Synergy Degree of China’s Coal Capacity Governance Based on the Hierarchical Linear Model
by Dandan Liu, Huimin Ma, Fangming Xie, Jieyun Wei, Wenwen Chen and Song Bai
Energies 2026, 19(4), 902; https://doi.org/10.3390/en19040902 - 9 Feb 2026
Viewed by 503
Abstract
Achieving a secure and stable energy supply while steadily advancing the dual-carbon goals constitutes a dual strategic task for China’s sustainable development. Capacity governance policies serve as an effective tool for the government to regulate industrial capacity, facilitating a balance between supply and [...] Read more.
Achieving a secure and stable energy supply while steadily advancing the dual-carbon goals constitutes a dual strategic task for China’s sustainable development. Capacity governance policies serve as an effective tool for the government to regulate industrial capacity, facilitating a balance between supply and demand through interventions on both the production and consumption sides. As a fundamental energy source in China, coal capacity governance policies involve complexity and span multiple domains, with their effectiveness relying on synergy across different levels and departments. Using a hierarchical linear model, this study examines the specific impacts of policy synergy in capacity governance—from both the central and local government perspectives—on local economic, environmental, and social outcomes. The findings indicate that policy synergy at the central level yields significant economic and social benefits, while its environmental benefits remain less evident. In contrast, policy synergy at the local level demonstrates significant positive effects across all three dimensions: economic, environmental, and social. By quantitatively assessing the tiered differences in the multidimensional benefits of policy synergy, this study provides a scientific basis and theoretical support for both central and local governments to pursue maximized economic, environmental, and social benefits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Energy Transition and Economic Policy: Pathways to a Low-Carbon Future)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop