What are the priorities for improving the cleanliness of energy consumption in rural China? Urbanisation advancement or agriculture development?

China's rural energy construction is facing many problems. In this study, we used a structural equation model to investigate the influence path of agricultural development and urbanisation advancement on the clean level of energy use in agricultural production and rural life. The results show that: (1) Agricultural mechanisation has improved the clean level of energy use and change the development pattern into a more sustainable model in agricultural production, agricultural development may hinders the advancement of agricultural mechanisation while restricting clean energy use in agricultural production. (2) Urbanisation advancement increases the consumption proportion of clean energy in agricultural production through the mediation effect of the agricultural mechanisation. (3) The increase in farmers' income has reduced the consumption proportion of coal in rural life. (4) Agricultural development is the main driving force for improving the clean level energy use in rural life, and this driving force can be strengthened by increasing farmers' income brought by agricultural development. (5) The improving effect of agricultural development on the clean level energy use in rural life is far greater than that of urbanisation advancement. In summary, agricultural development should be the focus of China's rural energy constructions, and promoting agricultural mechanisations and increasing farmers' income should be the focus of policy. Urbanisation advancement should be promoted in a balanced way in poor and rich areas while paying attention to the governance of low-quality energy. (c) 2022 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of International Energy Initiative.