Coal consumption, CO2 emission and economic growth in China: Empirical evidence and policy responses

Harry Bloch, Shuddhasattwa Rafiq and Ruhul Salim

Energy Economics, 2012, vol. 34, issue 2, 518-528

Abstract: This article investigates the relationship between coal consumption and income in China using both supply-side and demand-side frameworks. Cointegration and vector error correction modeling show that there is a unidirectional causality running from coal consumption to output in both the short and long run under the supply-side analysis, while there is also a unidirectional causality running from income to coal consumption in the short and long run under the demand-side analysis. The results also reveal that there is bi-directional causality between coal consumption and pollutant emission both in the short and long run. Hence, it is very difficult for China to pursue a greenhouse gas abatement policy through reducing coal consumption. Switching to greener energy sources might be a possible alternative in the long run.

Keywords: China; Coal consumption; Energy conservation; Cointegration; Error correction model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (132)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:34:y:2012:i:2:p:518-528

DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2011.07.014

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