How does technology adoption affect energy intensity? Evidence from a meta-analysis

Thu Thi-Thu Vu and Binyam Afewerk Demena

Applied Energy, 2025, vol. 398, issue C, No S0306261925011699

Abstract: In the last two decades, the relationship between technology adoption and energy intensity has been extensively examined in multiple frameworks across various methods and countries. This paper is a meta-analysis of 1305 reported estimates from 72 empirical studies published up to May 2024. While slightly more than two-fifths of the reported estimates validate significant negative evidence, one-quarter of the empirical estimates provide contrasting evidence, positive and statistically significant. In light of these mixed findings, this research aims to identify the underlying genuine effect while adjusting for publication (and other potential) bias, and analyse the factors that drive the variation in reported estimates of the empirical studies. Our results validate evidence of a negative relationship between technology adoption and energy intensity with the absence of any publication bias. The multivariate analysis highlights that the variability in reported estimates is systematically linked to both the specification characteristics of the empirical approach and the publication attributes across different studies. Correcting for heterogeneity, the best practice models confirm the negative relation between technology adoption and energy intensity.

Keywords: Technology adoption; Energy intensity; Technology-energy substitution; meta-analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:appene:v:398:y:2025:i:c:s0306261925011699

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.126439

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