Study on the economic priorities of renewable energy policy and energy efficiency for sustainable development: a comparative analysis of China and Germany

Abstract

Renewable energy policy and energy efficiency have become central to sustainable development, but the economic priorities embedded in national transition strategies are not the same across countries. This study compares China and Germany through a compact analysis of six official national policy texts and two descriptive indicators, namely renewable energy consumption share and energy intensity, over the period 2015 to 2021. The policy texts were coded into major instrument categories, including regulation, planning, fiscal support, market mechanisms, technology, infrastructure, and energy security. The results show that China places greater emphasis on strategic planning, financial incentives, technology support, and security related coordination, whereas Germany gives stronger weight to rule based transition management, market design, and system integration. The descriptive indicators support this comparison. China’s renewable energy consumption share rises from 12.2% to 15.2%, while Germany remains at a higher level and reaches 17.6% in 2021. Over the same period, energy intensity declines from 7.24 to 6.30 in China and from 2.63 to 2.31 in Germany. These findings do not establish causality, but they show that similar transition goals can be pursued through different economic and governance logics.