China's energy intensity change in 1997-2015: Non-vertical adjusted structural decomposition analysis based on input-output tables

Energy saving is essential to sustainable development and has been a major target set by the Chinese government. This study analyzes China's energy intensity change during 1997-2015. This paper applies non-vertical adjusted structural decomposition analysis method to build comparable input-output tables and decomposes China's energy use according to technical change, demand structure, import structure, import quantity, and export quantity for five types of energy. The results show that: (1) Both technical changes and demand structure changes are important driving forces for China's energy intensity decrease; (2) Technical changes have played an increasingly important role in energy intensity decrease over time since 2002; (3) Technical change effect has caused the energy intensity of traditional high energy-consuming industries to decrease; (4) The results are robust under different degrees of non-vertical adjustments. Although technical change has played a critical role in China's energy saving, the increase in demands will become increasingly important factors in changes to energy intensity and will require continued future research. (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier B.V.