Local government competition, new energy industry agglomeration and urban ecological total factor energy efficiency: A new perspective from the role of knowledge

The contradiction between industrial agglomeration and energy constrains the development of cities. Government competition can affect the flow of factors for industrial agglomeration. Based on the data of 274 cities in China from 2005 to 2020, this paper constructs improved non-radial directional distance function (NDDF) and dynamic spatial durbin model (SDM). The paper further uses a threshold effect model and a mediating effects model to examines the impact and spillover effects of local government competition (LGC), new energy industry clustering and their integration on ecological total factor energy efficiency (ETFEE) from the perspective of the role of knowledge. To solve the problem of endogeneity, this paper uses the presence or absence of highway entrances and exits in cities in 2004 as an instrumental variable. The study found that new energy industry agglomeration and LGC can promote ETFEE in the short term, but it will inhibit ETFEE in the long term. New energy industry agglomeration affects local ETFEE through two types of mediating effects: narrowing knowledge breadth and widening knowledge distance between cities. At the same time, new energy industry agglomeration and LGC has a significant spatial spillover effect on urban ETFEE in the short term. Areas with high urban ETFEE can promote the improvement of ETFEE in neighbouring areas. However, from the perspective of regional differences, it finds that the concentration of new energy industries and LGC have different effects on ETFEE. There is a significant impact in the eastern region, but not in the central and western regions. Finally, the paper gives constructive advice for the adaptation of the knowledge structure and the improvement of energy efficiency through the national and governmental levels.