The ESG performance of energy-intensive firms is not only related to their long-term investment value and competitiveness but also directly affects national energy security, environmental protection and the sustainable development of the overall economy. This study conducts an empirical analysis based on data from Chinese A-share listed energy-intensive firms from 2014 to 2022 to examine the impact and mechanisms of supply chain digitalization on the ESG performance of energy-intensive firms. The result suggests that supply chain digitalization can improve the corporate ESG performance of energy-intensive firms. Specifically, supply chain digitalization promotes energy-intensive firms’ ESG performance by alleviating financing constraints and mitigating managerial myopia. The positive effect of supply chain digitalization on the ESG performance of energy-intensive firms is more significant in firms with lower supply chain concentration and regions with higher levels of digital inclusive finance development. Furthermore, supply chain digitalization has a promoting effect on energy-intensive firms’ environmental, social, and governance dimensions respectively. This study fills a research gap by directly establishing the link between supply chain digitalization and ESG performance in energy-intensive firms, a sector central to global sustainable development, and deepens the understanding of the underlying transmission mechanisms; it further enriches the research on the influencing factors and implementation paths of corporate ESG performance, expands the research boundary of the intersection between supply chain digitalization and ESG performance, and provides important practical implications for promoting the high-quality and sustainable development of energy-intensive firms under the background of modern supply chain construction.

As climate change increasingly threatens sustainable development goals, climate risk has emerged as a critical factor shaping corporate strategic decisions and capital allocation behavior. Using a sample of Chinese A-share listed firms over the period 2008 to 2024, this study constructs a firm-level climate risk index through textual analysis of annual report disclosures and examines its effect on corporate green investment. We find that climate risk is positively associated with corporate green investment. Mechanism analysis reveals that climate risk operates through dual pathways: it enhances firms’ green strategic orientation as the internal governance mechanism, and heightens public green attention as the external governance mechanism, both of which are positively related to increasing firms’ green investment. Heterogeneity analysis shows that the promoting effect is more pronounced for state-owned enterprises, heavy-polluting firms, firms with negative media coverage, and firms located in northern regions of China. Further analysis reveals that climate risk is more strongly associated with green transformation investment over end-of-pipe treatment investment, and firms that increase green transformation investment in response to climate risk achieve stronger firm growth. These findings provide new evidence on how climate risk shapes corporate environmental behavior, offering practical insights for promoting sustainable investment and advancing corporate contributions to sustainable development.