Regional Resource Endowments Research Articles

Differentiated Improvement Path of Carbon Emission Efficiency of China’s Provincial Construction Industry: A Fuzzy-Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis Approach

Promoting carbon reduction in the construction sector is crucial to achieving China’s ‘double carbon’ target. However, due to the interaction of multiple factors, the carbon emission efficiency of Chinese construction industry (CEECI) varies from province to province, and the path to efficient CEECI is not uniform. This study aims to analyze the combined effects of multiple factors on CEECI and to explore the underlying logic behind the formation of efficient CEECI in the province, which measures the CEECI for 2018 and 2019 for 30 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government of China using the super-slack-based measure (Super-SBM), which includes non-desired outputs. From a group perspective, the qualitative comparative analysis method is applied to analyze the common mechanism of the regional economic development level, energy consumption structure, business management level, market openness, science, and technology innovation level on CEECI. The results show that the regional construction industry has three equivalent low-carbon development paths: “low energy management”, “scale management”, and “scale market opening”. Finally, according to the differences in regional resource endowments, differentiated paths suitable for the low-carbon development of the construction industry in different regions are proposed.

Threshold effects of green technology application on sustainable grain production: Evidence from China.

Sustainable production is considered as an important approach to solve the dilemma of food insecurity. Green technologies have made contributions to improving food production and reducing environmental pollution. Studying the effects of green technologies on sustainable food production has great significance. The paper started with the influence mechanism of green technology application on the green total factor productivity of grain (GTFPG). With the GTFPG, green technology efficiency change of grain (GECG) and green technical progress change of grain (GTCG) measured, threshold models were constructed to explore the nonlinear impacts of various green technologies on GTFPG and the influence paths. Results indicated that the differences of GTFPG among provinces in China were decreased mainly due to the changes of GTCG, while the regional differences of GECG remained small. The impacts of green technologies had threshold effects that depended on the ecological effects of green technologies in different application stages, and were significantly different in the major and non-major grain producing areas. Meanwhile, significant differences existed in the influence paths of green technologies. In the major grain producing areas, green technologies were more likely to improve GTFPG through the GTCG path; while in the non-major grain producing areas, the GECG path and the GTCG path were both important to improve GTFPG. The differences of green technologies' threshold effects and influence paths in the major and non-major grain producing areas were caused by regional technology preference, resource endowment and technology compatibility. This study emphasizes that the development of green technologies should fully consider the resource endowment and economic development of different regions, as well as the applicability and adoption rate of green technologies.

Thermo-economic evaluation and optimization of solar-driven power-to-chemical systems with thermal, electricity, and chemical storage

This paper evaluates the thermo-economics of power-to-chemicals using solar energy, with the chemicals being methane, methanol, and gasoline. In addition to the optimal technology sizing and heat cascade utilization, this paper also considers the optimal molten-salt solar power tower (MSPT) design, as the MSPT significantly affects the levelized product cost. A bi-level optimization is proposed, employing mixed-integer linear programming at the lower level with heat and mass integration for optimizing sizes and operating strategies of technologies, and with heat cascade utilization and a genetic algorithm at the upper level for optimizing the MSPT design. In the upper level, the full-load storage hours, design direct normal irradiance, solar multiple, and sizes of the MSPT are optimized. The electricity sources considered are the MSPT, photovoltaic (PV) with daily electricity storage, and the electrical grid as a complementary technology to satisfy the targeted daily product demand. Cost-competitiveness of solar-driven chemical synthesis is thoroughly assessed via considering sensitivity analysis on 1) regional solar resource endowments and actual local demands; 2) electricity sources, that is, PV vs. MSPT; and 3) the scale effect represented by different chemicals’ yield. The results show that the levelized methane cost ranges from 4.5 to 8.5 €/kg, depending on the location, plant size, and annual power contribution of concentrated solar power. Due to the larger mass production, the levelized cost of methanol and gasoline is lower: 1.5–2.2 €/kg for methanol and 4–6 €/kg for gasoline. The findings highlight the significance of location choice, that is, natural endowment of solar radiation and carbon sources. Using the syngas co-electrolysis pathway and direct solar radiation 100 kWh/m2 higher, the methane production cost is decreased by 2.4 €/kg. Sensitivity analysis performed on plant scale reveals that a compact, small-scale system is far too expensive. The levelized cost of methane could be decreased by 1.2 €/kg when the plant is scaled up from 4,000 to 20,000 kg/day H2. Due to its expensive electricity storage and limited working hours, PV is typically not chosen as a power source. Overall, solar fuels are unlikely to be cost-competitive in the near future when compared to market prices for all three compounds under consideration.

Coupling and Coordinating Relationship between Agricultural Eco-Efficiency and Food Security System in China.

Carbon peaking, carbon neutrality goals and food security are the basis of sustainable development, and exploring the coordination relationship between China's agricultural eco-efficiency and food security system has a major significance for the implementation of relevant strategies. This paper is based on collaboration research on the synergistic relationship between agricultural eco-efficiency and food security systems using methods such as entropy weight method, coupling coordination model, spatial autocorrelation model, etc., revealing the evolution-driven mechanism of the coupling coordination degree. This study found that a higher level of coupling coordination always occurs in those areas with high standard farmland construction and large grain production scale, while economically developed areas appear to have a lower overall coordination level limited by endowment constraints and division of labor in development planning. It shows a positive spatial correlation in terms of geographical distance between agricultural eco-efficiency and food security, and the positive spillover effect gradually increases but is not strong overall. China should combine regional resource endowment and development planning, pay attention to the improvement of large-scale and standardized agricultural production, continue to strengthen the development of clean agricultural production, and achieve food security under the constraints of the carbon peaking and carbon neutrality goals.

Can Mechanization Promote Green Agricultural Production? An Empirical Analysis of Maize Production in China

This study systematically analyzes the impact of China’s maize Green Total Factor Productivity (GTFP) and mechanization on GTFP, providing a reference for reasonably playing the role of mechanization and improving China’s agricultural GTFP. Based on the difference in crop types and regional applicability of agricultural mechanization, this study selects maize as the research crop to analyze the impact of agricultural mechanization level on GTFP. In this study, the SBM-ML model is used to measure China’s maize GTFP, reveal the temporal and regional change characteristics of maize GTFP, and clarify the optimization direction of maize GTFP from the perspective of regional differences and resource endowment differences. This study uses the threshold regression model to systematically analyze the impact of agricultural mechanization on GTFP and its mechanism. Results are given as follows: (1) The growth of China’s maize production GTFP fluctuates greatly in each year, and the growth of maize GTFP depends on the alternate promotion of technical efficiency and technical progress. Greenhouse gas emissions have a significant impact on GTFP. Excessive use of pesticides and fertilizers is the biggest obstacle to the improvement of maize GTFP. (2) There are also specific regional differences in the factors that affect the improvement of maize GTFP efficiency in different regions. The impact of mechanization on agricultural GTFP varies among regions. (3) The development level of agricultural mechanization at different stages has different promotion effects on maize GTFP. Agricultural mechanization has a two-way effect on maize GTFP. The factors of land type and land area will not limit the promotion of agricultural mechanization to maize GTFP. (4) Agricultural financial investment, environmental pollution control efforts, agricultural science and technology expenditure and other factors play a positive role in improving GTFP. (5) In future production, we should pay attention to the combination of agricultural mechanization and regional production characteristics, optimize the allocation of agricultural machinery, and strengthen the coordination between agricultural mechanization and moderate scale operation. The findings of our study provide useful policy implications for the promotion and development of agriculture in China.

The role of digitalization on green economic growth: Does industrial structure optimization and green innovation matter?

The digital economy has demonstrated strong resilience and great potential, under the interwoven influence of the global pandemic and severe environmental concerns across the world. Therefore, there is a need to focus on the value of green economic growth in the digital economy. This paper constructs an evaluation index system and adopts the SEEA (System of Environmental and Economic Accounting) method to measure the digitalization level (Digi) and green economy growth level (GEG) of China. The internal mechanism and linear relationship between digitalization and green economy growth are examined based on the panel data from 2013 to 2019. Moreover, this study explores the spatial spillover effect. The major study findings are as follows: (1) Digitalization and green economy growth represent a steady growth trend, and the former as a whole significantly promotes the latter, with a marginal effect of 1.648. (2) The mechanism analysis indicates the intermediary effects’ size of three crucial intermediaries: green technology innovation > advanced industrial structure > the rationalization of industrial structure. (3) Both the “local effect” (0.556; 0.574) and “neighboring effect” (1.382; 1.415) of digitalization on green economy growth are positive under the two weight matrices and display “simultaneous resonance” characteristics based on the spatial perspective. (4) There exists obvious regional spatial heterogeneity and resource endowment heterogeneity. Finally, this study put forward corresponding policy implications, such as construction of new digital infrastructures and guiding green-energy consumption.

Divergent trends of ecosystem status and services in the Hexi Corridor

In terms of ecosystem structure, quality, and service, we have constructed a total of 18 characteristic evaluation indicators that could reflect the “state change interaction” of the ecosystem and analyzed the Spatio-temporal change of the ecosystem in Hexi Corridor from 2000 to 2020. The results show that: 1. The improvement of ecosystem and service is more obvious in the areas with a better ecological background in the East. The supply and regulation services of the ecosystem are synergetic. 2. In the past 2 decades, the ecological conditions of the Hexi corridor have improved as a whole, and the hot spots for improving ecosystem quality and services have gradually moved eastward. 3. Ecosystem changes have significantly changed the quantity and relationship of ecosystem services, showing strong spatial heterogeneity. For example, the loss of natural vegetation in the central and eastern regions with good ecological backgrounds has improved the water conservation service and also enhanced the synergy between it and the supply service. From the perspective of the relationship between ecosystem regulation services and supply services, the coordination characteristics are weakened, but the performance of regions with a poor ecological background in the west is just the opposite. In short, the typical climate characteristics of dry land with little rain and the spatial pattern of water resource shortage not only jointly determine the ecosystem background of the region, but also bring significant spatial differences and greater uncertainties to the relationship between ecosystem transformation and ecosystem services. Therefore, dryland ecosystem management and protection should be based on detailed and differentiated ecosystem assessment, taking into account regional natural resource endowment, giving priority to improving the stability of the regional ecosystem and gradually increasing regional ecosystem services.

Is local grid parity affordable in China? Discussion on the regional wind power potential and investment returns under policy uncertainty

In China, achieving grid parity is critical for a low-cost carbon-neutral transition over the next decades. However, it may post investment dilemma in renewable energy, given the significant differences in resource endowment across various regions. In this paper, we quantify the regional wind resource endowment and evaluate the impact of different grid parity scenarios on regional wind power investments, including long-term contracts with fixed prices, free contracts with decreasing prices and the marketisation of the electricity market. The results show that while the wind power investment returns decrease in all regions with the feed-in tariff degression, the regions in west China with less developed economies are more affected. Additionally, the regional wind power investment return significantly and positively correlates with the regional wind power potential, but the degree of correlation decreases with the increase of electricity price uncertainty. Regions with abundant wind power resources, such as Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Gansu, cannot guarantee a sufficient return on investment when the uncertainty of electricity prices increases. It is suggested that alternative support schemes (e.g., long-term contract) and safeguard policies should be designed to reduce the uncertainty of electricity prices and offset the investment incentives created by subsidies (especially in western regions).

Has China's Low-Carbon City Construction Enhanced the Green Utilization Efficiency of Urban Land?

China has implemented the low-carbon city pilot (LCCP) policy in the hopes of efficiently limiting carbon emission intensity to combat global warming and promote green economic growth. Urban land utilization, the second-largest source of carbon emissions, is key to the LCCP policy being able to have the desired effect, which has attracted widespread attention. Based on the panel data from prefecture-level cities in China from 2006 to 2019, this study used the propensity score matching difference-in-differences method (PSM-DID) to examine the impacts of LCCP policy on green utilization efficiency of urban land (GUEUL). The results reveal that LCCP policy has a beneficial impact on GUEUL and can effectively boost the future possibilities of green and low-carbon city development. Due to variances in regional economic and resource endowment level, the impacts of LCCP are different. The pilot has pushed GUEUL in the eastern region, western region, and growing resource-based cities, but has failed to improve GUEUL in other regions. Policymakers should adhere to the long-term sustainability of the LCCP policy and adopt differentiated action strategies to promote GUEUL when implementing it in different regions.

Assessing the Spatio-Temporal Pattern and Development Characteristics of Regional Ecological Resources for Sustainable Development: A Case Study on Guizhou Province, China

Sustainable development is a common challenge for all global economies, and the assessment of the spatial distribution and development process of ecological resources is the basis of sustainable development. Considering the heterogeneity of regional ecological resource endowment, it is necessary to conduct a targeted assessment for different regions. In this study, we selected Guizhou Province, which is rich in ecological resources, but has a fragile environment, as our study area, and cultivated land, woodland, grassland, and water resources were selected as critical evaluation indicators. Notably, we applied Kernel density analysis methods, based on the remote sensing data of 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020, to explore the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics and evolution pattern of regional ecological resources. The results indicated that the evolution of ecological resource development in Guizhou could be divided into three phases: degenerative (2000–2005), recovery (2005–2015), and development (2015–2020). The spatial distribution of Guizhou’s ecological resource was shown to be heterogeneous in the north and south and more homogeneous in the middle regions. Guizhou has diverse land-use types, with obvious regional differences in land-use structure. Notably, even though the development of ecological resources in Guizhou has improved, the development and utilization degree of ecological resources is still low, and the ecological damage is serious. This study can be used as a scientific reference by policymakers and decisionmakers to develop new regulations for ecological resources protection and sustainable development in China. We suggest that different regions should adopt more detailed measures; particularly, it is important to establish a spatial governance system to promote ecological resources development in the context of local conditions.

Method multi-criteria decision-making method for site selection analysis and evaluation of urban integrated energy stations based on geographic information system

As an important carrier of multi-energy coupling of regional integrated energy system, the integrated energy station integrates a variety of energy coupling devices, which can fulfill interconnection and complementarity of energy between regions and enhance the economic and environmental benefits of energy use. In the planning of integrated energy stations, it is necessary to consider the characteristics of regional resource endowments and load energy consumption. In this paper geographic information system (GIS) is introduced into the site selection planning of integrated energy stations, and a location decision model is built based on GIS & improved TOPSIS. In order to verify this for the feasibility of the model, Tianjin, China is selected as a representative case for empirical research. First, according to Chinese national standards and local planning requirements, GIS is adopted to initially screen the distribution and area of exclusion areas and viable areas for construction in the study area. Secondly, a comprehensive evaluation index system is established for nature, economy and society, in which the AHP method is used for calculate the weight of each index to obtain the final optimal alternative with the integration of the GIS geographic layer overlay function. Finally, the improved TOPSIS model is used to rank the alternatives and obtain the ranking results. Sensitivity analysis and comparative analysis is conducted on the ranking results, indicating a higher priority of selecting sites A1, A4, A5 and A11. Analysis result effectively verifies that the improved TOPSIS method can improve the accuracy of the site selection decision for integrated energy stations. This paper can provide support for the site selection and layout of integrated energy stations, effectively improve the decision-making level and work efficiency of decision-makers, and enrich the application space of GIS methods in the energy field.

Energy-Saving Effect of Regional Development Strategy in Western China

Improving energy utilisation efficiency is imperative to ensuring economic growth and achieving sustainable development. China’s Western Development Strategy (WDS) is a major driver to accelerate the economic development of Western China. It stresses the rational control of energy consumption through the vigorous development of a circular economy to achieve the goal of energy conservation. Based on the measurement of energy utilisation efficiency at the provincial level in China, this study evaluates the impact of the WDS on energy utilisation efficiency through a synthetic control method. Then, the internal impact mechanism of the WDS on energy utilisation efficiency is investigated. In addition, this paper tests the heterogeneous effects of the WDS on energy utilisation efficiency from the perspective of the regional scale, resource endowment, performance appraisal, and institutional quality. It is found that the WDS improves energy utilisation efficiency not only through direct effects but also indirectly by accelerating the spatial agglomeration of advantage industries in Western China, which enhanced technological innovation capacity, optimised industrial structure, and improved the human capital level to ameliorate energy utilisation efficiency. Further analysis proves that the energy-saving effect of the WDS is significant in provinces with a small regional scale, less abundant resources, higher levels of the performance appraisal index and quality system. Accordingly, some targeted policy suggestions are made for the government herein.

Hydrogen-Electric Coupling Coordinated Control Strategy of Multi-Station Integrated System Based on the Honeycomb Topology

With the high-proportion accession of renewable energy and randomness of the load side in the new energy power system, unbalanced feeder power and heavy overload of the transformer caused by massive access of highly uncertain source loads become more and more serious. In order to solve the aforementioned problems, a honeycomb topology of the multi-station integrated system is proposed. The soft open point (SOP) is used as the key integrated equipment of the internal unit of a multi-station integrated system. The honeycomb grid structure is composed of flexible nodes, and the multi-station integrated system is composed of multi-network flexible interconnection. Based on the characteristics of the regional resource endowment, hydrogen energy flow is deeply coupled in parts of honeycomb grids. In order to improve the reliability and flexibility of the multi-station integrated unit, the structure of the new multi-station integrated unit, the power balance constraints on the unit, and the switching process of SOP control mode are studied. At the same time, the hydrogen electricity coupling structure and the coordinated control strategy of hydrogen electricity conversion are proposed to solve the problem of deep application of hydrogen energy. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed multi-station integrated system is verified by using three simulation models.

Influence Mechanism of Industrial Agglomeration and Technological Innovation on Land Granting on Green Total Factor Productivity

The influence of land granting on green total factor productivity (GTFP) and its mechanisms remain under-explored. Based on dynamic spatial panel data of 30 provincial administrative regions in China from 2007 to 2017, this study attempts to establish the framework of a transmission mechanism among land granting, manufacturing agglomeration and technological innovation, and green total factor productivity, and measures their interactions by the mixed directional distance function and Global Malmquist–Luenberger index model containing undesirable output. Then, this paper empirically estimates the impacts of land granting, industrial agglomeration and technological innovation on green total factor productivity in China with a dynamic spatial mediating effect model. The results show that the development paradigm of China’s industrial green economy is characterized by path dependence, and industrial GTFP has a significant spatial effect. Local governments rely on low-price competition to obtain cost advantages and facilitate the agglomeration of local manufacturing industries, and promote the impact of negotiation on industrial GTFP through the mediating effect of manufacturing agglomeration. There exists a non-linear relationship between manufacturing agglomeration and industrial GTFP. The land acquired through negotiation has a promoting effect on green technology innovation, and will foster industrial GTFP through the intermediary effect of technological innovation. No obvious non-linear relationship is observed between technological innovation and industrial GTFP. The grant of “Tender, Auction and Listing” has no significant influence on the industrial GTFP, and the mediating conduction effect on the GTFP of industry is not established. Industrial structure, government management and infrastructure will significantly promote the improvement of industrial GTFP, while the level of transportation will inhibit the improvement of industrial GTFP. Through administrative intervention in low-production capacity departments, local governments can integrate regional resource endowments, give play to the comparative advantages of industries, and achieve industrial structure upgrades and core competitiveness, which will be conducive to the improvement of industrial GTFP. High-level transportation conditions increase energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions in transportation operation, which makes no contribution to the enhancement of industrial GTFP.

Spatiotemporal analysis of rural energy transition and upgrading in developing countries: The case of China

Rural energy upgrade in developing countries is an essential part of the world climate mitigation work. To systematically promote rural energy upgrade, we took the case of China and used a spatiotemporal model to investigate the spatiotemporal characteristics of energy ladders in agriculture and rural life of developing countries. The proportion of clean energy consumption in agriculture showed an interprovincial competition effect, whereas the proportion of oil consumption in rural life showed a demonstration effect. Severe reliance on coal hinders energy upgrade. Urbanisation has improved the clean level of energy use in agriculture but does not significantly affect the in rural life. Technological progress has increased the proportion of clean energy consumption but has little impact on the proportion of oil and gas consumption. The abundance of coal resources has prompted the massive use of coal and coal-fired power. Energy-use habit promotes the use of all types of energy. Except for that of gas, the consumption of different types of energy in agriculture and rural life mutually promotes. In summary, the development of energy technologies should be established based on the regional resource endowment and economic development level. Also, subsidy principles for clean energy projects should be established based on the development level of the agriculture and residents’ income. Rural energy upgrade is coordinated with urbanisation and the modernisation of the agriculture and rural life styles while paying attention to the mutual promotion between the agriculture and rural life. During the change of the energy-use habit under policy guidance, attention must be paid to interprovincial cooperation. Finally, a reasonable market mechanism should be established to promote energy upgrade.

Does the Construction of a Water Ecological Civilization City Improve Green Total Factor Productivity? Evidence from a Quasi-Natural Experiment in China.

Taking Water Ecological City Pilot (WECP) policy as a quasi-natural experiment, this paper adopts the PSM-DID method to investigate the impact of the WECP policy on the green total factor productivity (GTFP) of China’s prefecture-level cities. The results show that the implementation of the WECP policy significantly inhibits the improvement of GTFP. Furthermore, we find the implementation of the WECP policy has squeezed out government technological expenditures to some extent and aggravated the compliance cost of enterprises, which has not caused the “innovation compensation effect”, thus failing to improve GTFP. The heterogeneity analyses show that the policy effects vary with the imbalance of China’s regional development and resource endowments. Developed regions can better overcome the possible negative impact that comes with policy implementation. Governments need to formulate different policy strategies and plans from an overall macro perspective.

Study on the Impact of Energy Poverty on Energy Efficiency of Construction Industry: Mediating Role of Energy Consumption Structure

In the process of continuously advancing urbanization, the energy efficiency of the construction industry, as a pillar industry of the national economy, has attracted much attention. The imbalance of regional economic development, the difference of regional resource endowment, and the incomplete energy infrastructure in some areas lead to the prominent problem of energy poverty in China. Based on the panel data of 30 provinces and cities from 2008 to 2017, this paper calculates the energy poverty index and the energy efficiency of the construction industry. Using OLS, Tobit, Probit, and other estimation methods, this paper analyzes the internal relationship between energy poverty and the energy efficiency of the construction industry, the mediating role of energy consumption structure, and the moderating effect of technological level and marketization degree. The results show the following: There is a negative correlation between energy poverty and the energy efficiency of the construction industry (Husnain, ENERG POLICY, 2021, 157). The energy consumption structure plays a partial mediating role in the impact of energy poverty on the energy efficiency of the construction industry (Li, CHEM ENG J, 2021, 408). It means that energy poverty inhibits the optimization of the energy consumption structure, and through this process, it also inhibits the improvement of the energy efficiency of the construction industry. The technological level and the degree of marketization play a moderating role in the main effect, which can weaken and strengthen the negative impact of energy poverty on the energy efficiency of the construction industry (Gajdzik, ENERGIES, 2021, 14).

Will Environmental Regulation Narrow the Gap in Regional Economic Growth?

Empirical studies have shown that China's Air Pollution Prevention and Control Law (APPCL2000), as an environmental regulation, has significantly alleviated the air pollution problem and improved the TFP of air polluting enterprises. However, few scholars have studied the regional heterogeneity of this policy. To study this issue, this manuscript introduces the "Hu Line" from the perspective of regional resource endowment differences and divides China into a resource advantage area (A area) and a resource disadvantage area (B area). Subsequently, this manuscript uses the triple difference model and big data of Chinese industrial enterprises to verify. The results show that under environmental regulations, the TFP of air polluting enterprises in B area has increased more than in A area, and the rapid decline in the proportion of low-efficiency air polluting enterprises in B area is the main mechanism. It shows that environmental regulation is beneficial to narrow the gap of regional economic growth and realize economic catch-up in resource-disadvantaged areas.

China’s arable land wasting problem

PurposeChina's population–land contradiction is a crucial issue, and by deeply analyzing causes of wasting arable land, this article recommends some policies to avoid waste.Design/methodology/approachBased on the current high-, middle- and low-class differentiation in the agricultural products' consumption structure against urban residents' rapid income growth, this article proposes that agricultural products with distinctive regional characteristics should be developed according to regional natural agricultural resources and market demand, so as to ensure that China's scarce arable land can be used effectively.FindingsChoices in regional agricultural production relate to operational farmers' enthusiasm for profitability and production, residential farmers' ability to ensure their own food security, agriculture's sustainable development and arable land resources' optimal allocation. Therefore, the varietal structure of agricultural products and regional production layout should be compatibly decided according to consumer demand and resource endowment.Originality/valueDuring the process of industrialization and urbanization, wasting of arable land has become a social development problem. On the basis of agriculture's regional resource endowment, this article reconstructs the functional positioning of various Chinese agricultural regions and solves the difficult problem of consumption structure transformation and homogeneous competition through the geographical division of labor, thereby optimizing allocation of arable land resources.

Policy-relevant insights for regional renewable energy deployment

BackgroundThe paper explores how regional actors engage with energy systems, flows and infrastructures in order to meet particular goals and offers a fine-tuned analysis of how differences arise, highlighting the policy-relevant insights that emerge.MethodsUsing a novel framework, the research performs a comparative case study analysis of three regions in Italy and two of the devolved territories of the UK, Wales and Scotland, drawing on interviews and documentary analysis.ResultsThe paper shows that acknowledging the socio-materialities of renewable energy allows a fine-tuned analysis of how institutions, governance and infrastructure can enable/constrain energy transitions and policy effectiveness at local and regional levels. The heuristic adopted highlights (i) the institutions that matter for renewable energy and their varied effects on regional renewable energy deployment; (ii) the range of agencies involved in strategically establishing, contesting and reproducing institutions, expectations, visions and infrastructure as renewable energy deployment unfolds at the regional level and (iii) the nature and extent of infrastructure requirements for and constraints on renewable energy delivery and how they affect the regional capacity to shape infrastructure networks and facilitate renewable energy deployment. The paper shows how the regions investigated developed their institutional and governance capacity and made use of targets, energy visions and spatial planning to promote renewable energy deployment. It shows that several mediating factors emerge from examining the interactions between regional physical resource endowments and energy infrastructure renewal and expansion. The analysis leads to policy-relevant insights into what makes for renewable energy deployment.ConclusionThe paper contributes to research that demonstrates the role of institutional variations and governance as foundations for geographical differences in the adoption of renewable energy, and carries significant implications for policy thinking and implementation. It shows why and how policy-makers need to be more effective in balancing the range of goals/interests for renewable energy deployment with the peculiarities and specificities of the regional contexts and their infrastructures. The insights presented help to explain how energy choices and outcomes are shaped in particular places, how differences arise and operate in practice, and how they need to be taken into account in policy design, policy-making and implementation.