Will the Digital Economy Increase Energy Consumption? – An Analysis Based on the ICT Application Research

With the rapid development of digital technologies based on information and communication technology (ICT), some studies suggest that the development of the digital economy is bound to have a significant impact on energy consumption. There are also studies demonstrating from different perspectives that ICT plays an important role in improving energy efficiency. Then, will the rapid development of the digital economy lead to a sharp increase in energy demand (electricity demand), thus affecting China’s socio-economic transition to green and low-carbon development? To this end, it is of great practical significance to explore the relationship between the digital economy and energy consumption from theoretical and practical perspectives. Focusing on the issue of ICT and its impacts on energy consumption, this paper clarifies the internal influencing mechanism between ICT and energy consumption. On this basis, this paper compares and analyzes the models, methods, and data in existing studies from the aspects of measurement of ICT’s direct energy consumption, empirical research on ICT and energy consumption, and discussions on rebound effects. After a brief summary, this paper identifies their shortcomings and explores future research directions.