Renewable energy technology innovation for carbon and pollution control: a synergistic perspective

Introduction Achieving carbon mitigation and pollution control without sacrificing economic growth is a key challenge for green transformation. While prior studies have examined the environmental or economic effects of renewable energy technology (RET) innovation separately, less is known about whether RET innovation can simultaneously deliver both benefits and through what conditions and spatial channels. Methods Using provincial panel data from China, this study examines the impact of RET innovation on green total factor productivity (GTFP), measured with CO 2 and SO 2 as undesirable outputs. Results The results show that RET innovation significantly improves GTFP, indicating a “dual dividend” of pollution reduction and economic growth. This effect is mainly driven by technical efficiency improvement and, in some cases, technological progress, with solar energy technologies playing a particularly important role. The effect is also conditioned by human capital, government subsidies, technology flows, and intellectual property protection. In addition, RET innovation shows spatial spillover effects: it improves local GTFP but may inhibit neighboring regions through a siphoning mechanism. Discussion These findings provide evidence for designing differentiated policies to support RET innovation and promote coordinated green development.