Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China; Guangdong Province Land Survey and Planning Institute, Guangzhou, 510075, China.
School of Sociology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, Hubei, 430079, China.
J Environ Manage. 2021 Jul 15;290:112633. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112633. Epub 2021 Apr 20.
The pilot carbon emission trading scheme in Guangdong Province (GD ETS) of China has fulfilled seven compliance periods, and its potential impact on regulated firms has drawn increasing attention. This article empirically investigated the impact of the ETS on firm behaviors and competitiveness (i.e., cost competitiveness and green competitiveness) by surveying all power firms in the GD ETS. Low-carbon management, carbon asset transactions, and energy saving and emission reduction technology were identified as firm behaviors. The relationships among the ETS, firm behaviors, and firm competitiveness were tested by using bootstrap multiple mediation analyses. The results showed that the GD ETS has a positive impact on firm behaviors. The three examined firm behaviors actually reflect the depth of firm participation in the ETS. The more the firm participates, the greater the mediating effects that the firm behaviors exert on firm competitiveness are. Both carbon asset transactions and energy saving and emission reduction technology have a mediating effect on the relationship between the GD ETS and cost competitiveness, while only the latter mediates the relationship between the GD ETS and green competitiveness. Implications for policy makers and firm operators were discussed.
中国广东省（广东 ETS）的试点碳交易计划已经完成了七个履约期，其对受监管企业的潜在影响引起了越来越多的关注。本文通过对广东 ETS 中的所有电力企业进行调查，实证研究了 ETS 对企业行为和竞争力（即成本竞争力和绿色竞争力）的影响。低碳管理、碳资产交易和节能减排技术被确定为企业行为。采用自举多重中介分析检验了 ETS、企业行为和企业竞争力之间的关系。结果表明，广东 ETS 对企业行为有正向影响。这三种考察的企业行为实际上反映了企业参与 ETS 的深度。企业参与程度越高，企业行为对企业竞争力的中介效应就越大。碳资产交易和节能减排技术对广东 ETS 与成本竞争力之间的关系都具有中介效应，而只有后者对广东 ETS 与绿色竞争力之间的关系具有中介效应。讨论了对政策制定者和企业经营者的启示。
