Do ESG controversies moderate the relationship between CSR and corporate financial performance in oil and gas firms?

Abstract

La industria del petróleo y el gas está inmersa en un debate continuo sobre el impacto negativo de su actividad en la sostenibilidad ambiental. El mercado y los grupos de interés valoran cada vez más a las empresas socialmente responsables y penalizan a aquellas que no lo son. Este estudio analiza la influencia de las controversias ambientales, sociales y de gobernanza como variable moderadora de la relación entre los factores ESG y el desempeño financiero corporativo, desde la perspectiva de la valoración de mercado. Para ello, se aplican ecuaciones estructurales PLS-SEM a una muestra mundial de 264 empresas petroleras y gasistas. Los resultados confirman que las controversias ESG moderan la relación entre los factores ambientales, sociales y de gobernanza y el desempeño financiero corporativo.

The oil and gas industry is enmeshed in a continuous debate regarding the negative impact that its activity has on the sustainability of the environment. Increasingly, the market and stakeholders are positively evaluating those firms which are socially responsible and penalizing those that are not. Literature has analyzed the market view through the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) controversies and their relationship with Corporate Financial Performance (CFP), as well as with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy. This study analyzes the influence of ESG controversies as a moderating variable on the relationship between Environmental, Social, and Governance factors and Corporate Financial Performance from a market valuation perspective. To perform this analysis, PLS-SEM structural equations have been applied to a sample of 264 oil and gas firms globally. The results confirm the moderating influence of ESG controversies on the relationship between E, S, and G factors and Corporate Financial Performance.