Empirical Evidence on Pro-Environmental Activities of Companies in Times of Energy Transformation: A Case Study of Poland

Beata Bal-Domańska (), Elżbieta Stańczyk and Mirosława Szewczyk
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Beata Bal-Domańska: Faculty of Economic and Finance, Wroclaw University of Economics and Business, Komandorska 118, 53-345 Wroclaw, Poland
Elżbieta Stańczyk: Faculty of Law, Administration and Economics Institute of Economic Sciences, University of Wroclaw, Uniwersytecka 22/26, 50-145 Wroclaw, Poland
Mirosława Szewczyk: The Faculty of Economics and Management, Opole University of Technology, Luboszycka 7, 45-036 Opole, Poland

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 11, 1-24

Abstract: This article addresses a topic of critical importance globally, particularly in the context of the ongoing energy crisis, climate change, and efforts to transition towards sustainable energy systems. A growing environmental awareness among consumers, along with changing regulations on energy efficiency, forces companies to adapt their products and services to meet new market demands. Eco-innovations, such as energy-efficient technologies and environmentally friendly materials, can respond to the increasing demand for products with a lower carbon footprint and reduced energy consumption. Using structural equation modelling, our study aimed to evaluate the significance of selected determinants of enterprise activities aimed at innovations that yield environmental benefits. The analysis focused on the scale of the benefits obtained due to these innovations (e.g., reduced material or water use per unit of output, reduced energy use, reduced CO 2 footprint, reduction in pollution, or recycling of waste) and during the consumption or use of goods or services by the end user (e.g., energy savings, facilitated recycling, or extended product life). The empirical data source was a database of anonymised individual data from Statistics Poland. The database comprised 8544 industrial enterprises employing 10 or more people, of which 2714 introduced eco-innovations. To verify the hypothetical relationships between variables, we proposed a structural equation modelling method. The structural model estimates indicated that requirements arising from current and future regulations, pressure from high operational costs and administrative formalities, and reputation and incentives had a positive and statistically significant impact on the scale of benefits obtained due to these eco-innovations. The assessment of the importance of factors determining the introduction of eco-innovations differed slightly between companies of different sizes. For large enterprises, the key determinants were incentives, reputation, and law requirements. For medium-sized enterprises, incentives and reputation were the most influential. For small enterprises, reputation was the primary determinant, followed closely by pressure and incentives at a similar level.

Keywords: energy transformation process; energy efficiency; resource efficiency; eco-innovations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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