Impact of digital transformation on renewable energy companies’ performance: Evidence from China

Abstract

The rapid growth of the renewable energy industry provides essential opportunities for China to achieve the goal of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality. A rising number of renewable energy companies are positively embracing digital transformation in the digital age. However, the relationship between digital transformation and the performance of renewable energy companies remains unclear. To fill this gap, leveraging the latest advances in textual analysis, we quantify the extent of a renewable energy enterprise’s digital transformation. Meanwhile, based on fixed effect model and mediating effect model, we investigate the influence of digital transformation on firm performance using a panel data of Chinese A-share listed renewable energy companies. The results indicate that digital transformation enhances a renewable energy enterprise’s performance. Further, the promotion effect of digital transformation is greater among state-owned enterprises and large firms and is only helpful for firms in the eastern area. Moreover, we document that when a renewable energy enterprise adopts digital transformation, it has higher operating efficiency, lower cost, and better innovation success resulting in better performance. This research elucidates the role of digital transformation in forwarding the development of renewable energy companies and bears significant policy implications.

Digital Transformation Technology for Energy Enterprises Based on Intelligent Monitoring of Information in the Entire Business Domain Research and Applications

“…Compared with other industries, energy enterprises have both economic tasks and social responsibilities at the same time [6]. When a energy enterprise adopts digital transformation, it has higher operating efficiency, lower costs, and better innovation success, resulting in better performance [7].The new round of scientific and technological innovation drives the convergence of the energy revolution and the digital revolution. In order to grasp the development opportunities, and drive the development of the whole energy industry, energy enterprises need to re-recognize the important role of scientific and technological innovation, attach importance to the improvement of their own scientific and technological innovation strengths, and strive to make greater breakthroughs in the development [8].…”

Renewable energy adoption in multinational energy companies: A review of strategies and impact

“…Digital transformation is increasingly embraced by renewable energy companies, indicating a positive trend in the industry (Ren & Li, 2023). The transition to renewable energy follows the principle of innovation adoption, and understanding the concerns and enablers of renewable energy technologies adoption is essential for governments, regulators, policy makers, marketing agencies, and investors Makki & Mosly, 2020).…”

“…Furthermore, the role of intellectual capital in green supply chain management and its impact on the quality of services in renewable energy companies has been investigated, providing insights and recommendations for enhancing sustainability practices (Lutfi et al, 2023). The impact of digital transformation on the performance of renewable energy companies has been documented, indicating higher operating efficiency, lower costs, and better innovation success with the adoption of digital transformation (Ren & Li, 2023). Additionally, empirical studies have been conducted to investigate the acceptance of renewable energy using extended technology acceptance models, providing insights into the factors influencing renewable energy technology acceptance (Yang et al, 2021).…”

Exploring the Role of Digital Transformation and Breakthrough Innovation in Enhanced Performance of Energy Enterprises: Fresh Evidence for Achieving Sustainable Development Goals

“…The structured and unstructured information contained in emerging digital technologies has broadened the data mining space [37], accelerated the response speed to the long-tail needs of enterprise customers, and promoted industrial specialization and collaborative operation. Numerous researchers have tested various scenarios in this regard, and their outcomes reveal that through digital transformation, businesses can fortify their capacity for innovation, boost R&D spending, optimize their supply chain structure, and improve factor allocation efficiency-all of which contribute to an advancement in energy firms' carbon performance [38]. Such information is also conducive to improving the overall operational efficiency of enterprises.…”