Author(s)

Yilin Liu

Corresponding Author

Yilin Liu

Abstract

In order to achieve China's carbon emission goals, the central government proposed a pilot policy for low-carbon cities, promoting the harmonious development of low-carbon environmental protection and economic development, and giving heavy polluting enterprises the mission of accelerating green transformation and upgrading. The research sample of this paper is the data of A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen in China from 2007 to 2020. By constructing a difference-in-difference model, this paper examines the two paths and mechanisms of low-carbon policies driving the green transformation and upgrading of heavily polluting enterprises, and on this basis, it conducts robustness tests and heterogeneity analysis. The research finds that the implementation of low-carbon city policy significantly affects the investment decisions of heavily polluting enterprises on fixed assets and research and development(R&D), and the effect of this policy on investment strategies of enterprises of different ages, sizes, ownership and carbon emission intensity is different. This paper discusses the logical relationship and path mechanism between the pilot policies of low-carbon cities and the green transformation and upgrading of enterprises. The policy enlightenment obtained has an important role in how the country can achieve the green transformation of economy by driving the transformation and upgrading of heavily polluting enterprises under the "dual carbon" goal.

Keywords

Low carbon city pilot policy, Green transformation and upgrading, Difference-in-difference model