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Energy intensity improvement and energy productivity changes: an analysis of BRICS and G7 countries

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Abstract

This research defines the energy intensity target of the contemporaneous metafrontier and global metafrontier in order to assist decision-makers at identifying the efficient energy intensity target. We find that the sources of energy intensity improvement under the global metafrontier are due to three reasons: managerial inefficiency, technology gap inefficiency, and global technology gap inefficiency. In addition, the measurement of the energy intensity target also extends to that of energy productivity changes. The research applies data envelopment analysis (DEA) to empirically study Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) and the Group of Seven (G7) countries and demonstrates that the BRICS group exhibits a larger scope for energy intensity improvement than the G7 group, but that both groups should still pay greater attention to energy technology promotion to improve energy intensity. A win–win strategy for the two groups to achieve this is by fully realizing energy technology transfer from high-tech to low-tech countries.

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Acknowledgements

The three authors thank Taiwan’s Ministry of Science and Technology for partial financial support (MOST 108-2410-H-845-027-MY2, MOST 110-2410-H-263-008, and MOST 108-2410-H-009-039, respectively). The authors are grateful to two anonymous referees and two editors of this journal for their valuable suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Recreation and Sports Management, University of Taipei, No. 101, Sec. 2, Zhongcheng Rd., Shilin Dist., 111, Taipei City, Taiwan

    Ching-Ren Chiu

  2. Department of Finance, Chihlee University of Technology, No. 313, Sec. 1, Wenhua Rd., Banqiao Dist., 220305, New Taipei City, Taiwan

    Ming-Chung Chang

  3. Institute of Business and Management, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, No. 118, Sec. 1, Chung-Hsiao W. Rd., 100, Taipei City, Taiwan

    Jin-Li Hu

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  1. Ching-Ren Chiu
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Correspondence to Ming-Chung Chang.

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Chiu, CR., Chang, MC. & Hu, JL. Energy intensity improvement and energy productivity changes: an analysis of BRICS and G7 countries. J Prod Anal 57, 297–311 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11123-022-00630-7

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