[Evaluation of Energy Transition and Barrier Factors in Coal Resource Cities Under Carbon Neutral and Peak Carbon Goals].

As an important energy reserve base in China, accurate identification of the energy transition level and obstacle factors of coal resource cities of this type is conducive to achieving the carbon neutrality target proposed by China, as well as to the sustainable use of resources. The entropy-composite index method was used to evaluate the energy transition level and diagnose the obstacle factors of 47 coal resource-type cities from 2010 to 2020. The results showed that： ① The energy transition level of Chinese coal resource cities was steadily increasing and the overall transition level tended to be multi-polar, with the gap between cities increasing. Significant differences were observed in the development level of each criterion level and the spatial situation showed a shift from a "decentralized" layout with low level cities to a "clustered" layout with higher level cities as the core. ② From the perspective of different city types, the transformation level of growing cities was higher than that of other types of cities, the gap between the transformation levels of cities was gradually decreasing, and the energy transformation level of declining cities was the lowest. The transformation level of small cities was significantly lower than that of medium-sized and large cities and the differences between the groups of medium-sized cities were decreasing； while the differences between the groups of large cities were decreasing and the differences between the groups of large cities were decreasing. Small cities were significantly lower than medium-sized cities and large cities, the difference between groups of medium-sized cities was decreasing, and the difference between groups of large cities was increasing. ③ The primary barrier layer affecting the level of urban energy transition was the energy supply layer, followed by the innovation management layer. The comprehensive energy production capacity and the intensity of R&D inputs were the major barriers to most of the cities and the barriers to different types of cities were different. These findings enrich the exploration of the priorities and objectives of energy transition in different types of coal resource-based cities and also provide some practical insights into how to achieve low-carbon development in this type of cities.