Energy transition index for 281 Chinese cities

As the primary geographic scale for economic activities and carbon emissions, cities differ substantially in their energy structures, economic foundations, investment capacity, and other transition-related conditions. For China, as a major energy-consuming country, there is a need for a comparable city-level energy transition index that can simultaneously measure the extent of urban low-carbon transition and systematically evaluate the capacity and potential for future transformation. To this end, this study updates the original 2003–2019 city-level ETI dataset developed by Shen et al. by extending the panel to 2022. We retain the original framework and correct erroneous data in the early years according to actual data conditions, forming a consistent panel for 281 Chinese cities over the period 2003–2022. By capturing both temporal changes and spatial disparities in city energy transition, this dataset provides a basis for comparing city energy transition trajectories and offers empirical evidence for China’s long-term low-carbon development agenda.cc'li'maclima