The impact of green finance on the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry: An empirical study based on data from 30 provinces in China

As the global environmental pollution problem has received more attention, low-carbon development has become mainstream, and replacing fossil-fuel energy with new energy has become a general trend. Green finance, an important measure for promoting low-carbon development, is critical to the development of the nonhydro renewable energy industry. Using China's provincial panel data from 2008 to 2021, we conducted an empirical analysis to explore the impact of green finance on the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry. We found the following: (1) Nationally, green finance promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry. (2) The mechanism test results show that green finance promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry by improving the level of scientific and technological research as well as reducing the corporate financing cost. (3) Regionally, green finance could significantly promote the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry in energy-rich regions, while the impact was not significant in energy-poor regions. (4) Green finance significantly promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry in the inland region, while the impact was not significant in the coastal region. (5) Green finance promoted the development of wind power generation more than it did photovoltaic generation. Based on the findings, the non-hydro renewable energy industry in various regions should be developed according to local conditions, giving full play to the promotional role of green finance.