Coupling between energy efficiency and industrial structure: An urban agglomeration case

Understanding the interactions between energy efficiency and industrial structure is conducive to sustainable urban development. The coupling mechanism in between remains to be unraveled in depth for forming a positive cycle. With the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) urban agglomeration as the empirical target, first the total-factor energy efficiency (TFEE) of the 26 cities of the YRD urban agglomeration during 2010–2017 is estimated by slacks-based measure model. The redefined Theil index, industrial advancement index and Lorentz curve statistics are then adopted to quantify industrial reasonability, industrial advancement and industrial concentration of cities. Finally, a coupling coordination degree model is employed to measure the comprehensive coupling level between energy efficiency and industrial structure. The results indicate that the TFEE of cities has great differences. Observed overall, the industrial reasonability and industrial advancement of cities reach a high level, while the industrial concentration is at a middle-lower level. In 2017, the comprehensive coupling of all cities is at high coordination running-in level and above. The results are expected to offer decision-making support on energy efficiency improvement and industrial restructuring for the YRD region, as well as other urban agglomerations in similar conditions.