Understanding the new quality productive forces in the energy sector

•“New quality productive forces” (NQPF) in China signals its move towards innovation as the new drivers of economic growth.•The development of NQPF affects labor landscape and technology development.•NQPF brings about significant change in the industrial value chain in China's energy sector.•NQPF refers to high-tech driven, and sustainability-oriented productivity with more radical rather than incremental innovation.•The energy sector is the key domain for creating new quality productive forces for high-quality economic growth. The introduction of the term “new quality productive forces” (NQPF) in China signals its move towards cutting-edge technologies and innovation as the new drivers of economic growth. As it shifts from labor-tensive sectors towards advanced industries, the energy sector is also expected to experience significant regime switch. This paper discusses how the new term articulated by the top leadership will reshape China’s energy sector including its labor, technology, critical resource supply, and the industrial value chain. The development of NQPF not only affects labor landscape and technology development, but also bring about significant change in the industrial value chain in China’s energy sector. I summarize that NQPF refers to high-tech driven, and sustainability-oriented productivity with more radical rather than incremental innovation. Overall, the energy sector is the key domain for creating NQPF for high-quality economic growth and the new forces act as a significant catalyst in transforming the energy sector towards achieving green, low-carbon, and sustainable development.