Investigating the Impact of Capacity Utilization on Carbon Dioxide Emission: Evidence from China’s Iron and Steel Industry

Ya Chen (), Zhang Xintian () and Liu Haoxiang ()
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Zhang Xintian: School of Economics, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei230601, China
Liu Haoxiang: School of Automotive and Transportation Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei230009, China

Journal of Systems Science and Information, 2021, vol. 9, issue 6, 681-703

Abstract: In recent years, China’s industrialization and urbanization have deepened, and the economy has grown considerably. But at the same time, they have also brought about many environmental problems. As a pillar of the national economy, the iron and steel (IS) industry is one of the most emitting and energy-consuming sub-sectors of the industrial sector. It is also one of the industries with the most severe overcapacity problem in China. In this paper, we explore the impact of capacity utilization on carbon dioxide emission based on panel data of China’s iron and steel industry from 2005 to 2014. We also tested the heterogeneity in different regions and different sub-samples. Results show that capacity utilization and carbon dioxide emission are positively correlated. However, the impact of capacity utilization on carbon dioxide emission differs when considering regional heterogeneity. Results in all three regions show a positive relationship between capacity utilization and carbon dioxide emission, but the impact intensity is strongest in the western region, followed by the eastern and central regions. Moreover, capacity utilization impacts carbon dioxide emission by influencing firm numbers in the iron and steel industry and energy consumption. Further analysis shows that there exists a threshold effect in different stages of energy consumption and energy structure. Finally, some findings and practical policy recommendations are provided.

Keywords: carbon dioxide emission; capacity utilization; influencing mechanism; threshold effect; iron and steel industry; China (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bpj:jossai:v:9:y:2021:i:6:p:681-703:n:6

DOI: 10.21078/JSSI-2021-681-23

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