The impact of new digital infrastructure on industrial enterprises’ carbon performance: A mechanism-based analysis

Amid escalating global climate change and China’s ambitious “dual-carbon” goals, improving the carbon performance of industrial enterprises is imperative. However, how digital transformation enables this transition at the micro level remains poorly understood. Prior macro- and meso-level studies fail to uncover the firm-level mechanisms through which digital tools affect carbon outcomes, and lack attention to the contextual conditions that shape their effectiveness. To address these critical gaps, this study investigates the impact and transmission channels of new digital infrastructure—a key enabler of digitalization—on the carbon performance of Chinese A-share listed industrial enterprises (2013–2022). Employing fixed-effects panel regressions and robust identification strategies (e.g., instrumental variables), we find that new digital infrastructure significantly enhances carbon performance. Crucially, this study identifies and empirically validates three mediating mechanisms: the alleviation of financing constraints, the reduction of transaction costs, and the promotion of green technological innovation. Furthermore, the impact is heterogeneous, being more pronounced in highly marketized regions, non-high-tech industries, and mature-stage enterprises. By unpacking the “black box” of mechanisms and delineating key boundary conditions, this research provides nuanced micro-foundations for the digital-green nexus, highlighting how digital infrastructure can be strategically deployed to advance industrial sustainability.