Digital Governance Capacity and Urban Energy Structure Transformation

—— Evidence from Chinese Prefecture-Level Cities

Abstract

With the rapid development and deep application of digital technologies, digital governance capacity has become a crucial force in promoting urban governance modernization and energy structure transformation. Based on panel data from 285 prefecture-level cities in China from 2010 to 2022, this study constructs a Digital Governance Capacity Index and employs the System Generalized Method of Moments to empirically examine its impact on energy structure transformation. The findings reveal that digital governance capacity significantly reduces the share of coal consumption while increasing the proportion of clean energy consumption, and these conclusions remain robust after controlling for economic development level, industrial structure, environmental regulation, and other variables. Mechanism analysis demonstrates that digital governance capacity drives energy structure optimization through three pathways: enhancing technological innovation levels, strengthening the efficiency of environmental regulation enforcement, and improving the accessibility of green investment. Heterogeneity tests indicate that the promoting effect is more pronounced in eastern regions, non-resource-based cities, and cities with higher marketization levels, while exhibiting diminishing marginal effects or even insignificance in central and western resource-based cities, reflecting the moderating role of path dependence and institutional environment. This study provides micro-empirical evidence for the synergistic advancement of the "Digital China" strategy and green low-carbon transformation, and offers practical guidance for local governments to implement differentiated policies and precisely enhance digital governance effectiveness in service of energy structure transformation.