Carbon emission reduction alliance, green technology, and emission reduction performance: an empirical study based on the synergistic perspective of environment and economy

Abstract

From the synergetic perspective of "Environment-Economy," this paper defines the enterprises' emission reduction performance as the financial income and ecological benefits obtained of implementing emission reduction measures. Based on the resource-based theory and ecological modernization theory, applying 314 listed construction companies' data from 2005 to 2020, the PSM-DID method is adopted to empirically research the effect and mechanism of carbon emission reduction alliance on the emission reduction performance of construction enterprises. The research shows that ① the carbon emission reduction alliance can improve the enterprises' emission reduction performance. However, it is only significant for environmental benefit but not for economic benefit. After the parallel trend test and placebo test, this conclusion is still valid. ② The regression results of the mechanism demonstrate that the carbon emission reduction alliance can promote green innovation, thereby boosting the enterprises' emission reduction performance. The knowledge absorption capacity of enterprises positively regulates the main effect and intermediary effects. ③ Further analysis indicates that there is a U-shaped relationship between green innovation and economic emission reduction performance and an inverted U-shaped connection with emission reduction performance from an environmental perspective.