Pathways to Improve Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Efficiency During the Low-Carbon Transformation of the Logistics Industry

Improving logistics efficiency is a central goal in the green transformation of logistics. However, traditional efficiency measurement approaches fail to distinguish the respective impacts of energy conservation efficiency and emission reduction efficiency on overall green logistics efficiency. Thus, based on the NDDF-DEA, this study develops a new logistics efficiency evaluation model, which incorporates the energy structure. The model separately measures overall logistics efficiency, energy conservation efficiency, and emission reduction efficiency. Empirical results show that overall logistics efficiency reaches its highest level when energy conservation efficiency and emission reduction efficiency are aligned. In contrast, a gap between energy conservation efficiency and emission reduction efficiency often leads to lower overall efficiency. The proposed model introduces a new approach to evaluating green logistics efficiency and highlights that emission reduction could be a critical, limiting factor in the green transformation of logistics. In order to identify high-efficiency development pathways for the logistics industry, this study employs fs-QCA to explore four distinct configurations under multiple influencing factors. The results provide valuable insights and policy implications for governments and enterprises aiming to advance the sustainable transformation of logistics.