<p>The energy sector can pave the way to a low-carbon and sustainable energy system and at the same time, it can enhance growth and development trajectories of a nation. There are concerns regarding how China's highly developed fossil fuel-based and renewable energy sectors impact the nation's natural resource-based energy sector's socio-ecological development. Therefore, this study tries to see how private energy infrastructure investment, combining the private sector engagement in fossil fuel and renewable energy infrastructure, can affect the natural resource adjusted socio-ecological development of China. The study employed nonlinear estimation techniques such as the Dynamic Autoregressive Distributive Lag model with two models and a time-varying Granger causality test. Model 1 analyzes the influence of private investment in both fossil fuels and renewable energy on resource-adjusted socio-ecological development, while model 2 explores the effect of private investment only in renewable energy on resource-adjusted socio-ecological development. The results show that private investments in renewable energy sources in model 2 and fossil fuels and renewable energy sources in model 1 have the potential to decrease resource-adjested socio-ecological development in China. According to the research, a 1% increase in private energy investment would result in a 0.00051% drop in resource-adjusted socio-ecological development under model 1 in the short run. The same increase, however, would lead to a roughly 0.005% decline in the short run and 0.005% in the long run in resource-adjusted socio-ecological development in model 2, based on the research. Additionally, it seems that resource-adjusted socio-ecological development is being promoted by both urbanization and globalization. Based on these results, the research suggests that in order to promote resource-efficient and sustainable socio-ecological development in China, the public sector should invest heavily in renewable energy technology.</p>