Coal burning is a major contributor to air pollution. Selecting the optimal coal alternative path with economic feasibility and maximum environmental benefits is an important policy choice to mitigate air pollution. It could provide a basis for the design of energy transition policies and the green development of coal resource-based cities. This study designed a coal substitution policy based on the multi-objective optimization model, explored the optimal coal substitution path in coal resource-based cities with the goal of minimizing the costs and maximizing the benefits of coal substitution, and assessed the maximum emission reduction potential of air pollutants. The results show that: (1) by 2025, coal consumption in the study area must be reduced to 85%. The optimal coal substitution path is 90.00% coal-to-electricity and 10.00% coal-to-gas for civil emission sources and 83.94% coal-to-electricity and 16.06% coal-to-gas for industrial boiler emission sources. (2) by 2030, coal consumption must be reduced to 75%. The optimal coal substitution path is 90.00% coal-to-electricity and 10.00% coal-to-gas for civil sources and 78.80% coal-to-electricity and 21.20% coal-to-gas for industrial boiler sources. (3) by implementing the coal substitution policy, emissions of six key air pollutants such as SO₂, NO_X, CO, VOCs, PM₁₀, and PM_2.5 could decrease significantly.

As a linchpin of global energy conversion systems, the coking industry faces an imperative sustainable transition driven by tightening environmental regulations. The green development of coking enterprises is constrained by persistent heterogeneity across firms, exacerbated by the lack of a standardized enterprise-level evaluation framework—collectively impeding the industry’s green transition. This study established a comprehensive evaluation model for Green Coking Enterprises comprising 124 indicators, drawing on existing research, standards, and regulatory frameworks, and proposed the green coking concept. It covers seven core dimensions: infrastructure, management system, energy and resource inputs, environmental protection, products, by-products, and performance. Through a 2023 case analysis of the Ordos Etuoke Economic Development Zone—a strategic coking cluster positioned along China’s energy transition corridor—the applied framework revealed critical performance gaps. These gaps primarily manifested in three core dimensions: comparative disadvantages in resource consumption efficiency, deficiencies in environmental management systems, and lagging capabilities in deep processing of by-products. Accordingly, four improvement strategies closely aligned with these identified gaps are discussed. The development assessment model for coking enterprises constructed in this study provides a systematic methodology for evaluating the level of green transformation in such enterprises. It holds significant practical value for accurately identifying technical shortcomings, supporting management decision-making, and promoting the green upgrading of the coking industry.