Digitalization in response to carbon neutrality: Mechanisms, effects and prospects

Digitalization has unfolded great opportunities for its ability to promote carbon neutrality. Nevertheless, it is still in a nascent stage enduring uncertainties due to the lack of clear guidance about holistic digitalization contributions to the carbon neutrality process (CNP). Moreover, the intricate environmental effects provided by digitalization and digital mechanisms towards CNP present a fragmented landscape with controversial arguments, deserving further exploration. Addressing this gap, multidimensional macro environmental and economic impacts induced by digitalization - such as direct and indirect effects, rebound effects, spillover effects and higher-order effects - are systematically evaluated to answer the issues about whether digitalization can contribute to carbon neutrality. Furthermore, the synergetic management of digital application and carbon reduction are closely related to the energy value chain. To this end, by overviewing objective and comprehensive scenarios related to state-of-the-art digital technologies in multiple sectors of the energy value chain, this study proposes an integral mechanism framework by theorizing an undefined field about digitalization towards CNP in terms of sectoral innovation, energy systems, individual behaviours, carbon-related assurance, and energy security guarantees. Accordingly, this study also contributes to potential directions and rising policy expectations about further estimation of digital effects, broader digital scenarios towards CNP and sustainable digitalization.