ESG Disclosure and Audit Quality: An Empirical Study in the New Energy Industry

In the context of the ESG concept and the current "Dual Carbon" strategy, the concept of sustainable development and other development goals of the new era are closely related. ESG disclosure (environmental, social, governance) has attracted widespread attention across society. This study investigates the relationship between ESG disclosure quality and audit quality among Chinese new energy firms from 2014 to 2023. Grounded in the theories of information asymmetry, agency, and signaling, we find that higher-quality ESG disclosure is significantly positively correlated with improved audit quality, and this finding remains robust after passing robustness tests. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the positive effect is more pronounced among small firms than large ones. Furthermore, return on assets (ROA) positively moderates this relationship, suggesting that profitability amplifies the credibility-enhancing role of ESG disclosures. The research in this paper not only enriches the research content at the intersection of ESG and audit quality, but also provides a theoretical basis for new energy enterprises in constructing a high-quality information disclosure mechanism and improving audit governance effect.