Extreme climate risk and energy consumption structure

• Explore the impact of extreme climate risks on the energy consumption structure. • Explore possible mechanisms for the negative impact of extreme climate risks. • Explore the impact of financial scale and financial efficiency. Using data from 229 cities in China from 2012 to 2021, we examine the impact of extreme climate risk on the transformation of energy consumption structures. Findings indicate that extreme climate risk negatively affects the transformation of energy consumption structures due to inhibition of industrial structure upgrading and green innovation. However, financial scale and efficiency have a positive moderating effect, highlighting the significance of financial development in mitigating the adverse effects of extreme climate risk.