*Article* **Selection of Renewable Energy in Rural Area Via Life Cycle Assessment-Analytical Hierarchy Process (LCA-AHP): A Case Study of Tatau, Sarawak**

**Cyril Anak John 1 , Lian See Tan 1,\* , Jully Tan 2 , Peck Loo Kiew 1 , Azmi Mohd Shariff 3 and Hairul Nazirah Abdul Halim 4**

**Abstract:** With a growing global population and energy demand, there is increasing concern about the world's reliance on fossil fuels, which have a negative impact on the climate, necessitating the immediate transition to a cleaner energy resource. This effort can be initiated in the rural areas of developing countries for a sustainable, efficient and affordable energy source. This study evaluated four types of renewable energy (solar, wind, biomass, and mini-hydro energy) using the integrated Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approaches to select the best renewable energy source in Tatau, Sarawak. The criteria under consideration in this study included the environment, engineering and economics. The LCA was used to assess the environmental impact of renewable energies from gate-to-grave boundaries based on 50 MJ/day of electricity generation. The AHP results showed that solar energy received the highest score of 0.299 in terms of the evaluated criteria, followed by mini-hydro, biomass and wind energy, which received scores of 0.271, 0.230 and 0.200, respectively. These findings can be used to develop a systematic procedure for determining the best form of renewable energy for rural areas. This approach could be vital for the authorities that are responsible for breaking down multi-perspective criteria for future decision making in the transition into renewable energy.

**Keywords:** renewable energy; life cycle assessment; analytical hierarchy process; multi-perspective criteria

#### **1. Introduction**

Petroleum crude oil and natural gas are the main energy sources in Malaysia [1]. The overall conventional fuel business, on the other hand, has deteriorated due to price instability, supply insufficiency, and the environmental damage it causes, thereby ushering us into the inevitable era of renewable energy [2]. In 2017, renewable energy only accounted for approximately 5.8% of Malaysia's total energy consumption [1]. The Malaysian government has set a target of 20% renewable energy, in terms of total electricity generation, by 2025 [3]. According to Abdullah et al. [4], Malaysia has a wide range of opportunities and potential for focusing on renewable energy, particularly solar, wind, hydro, biogas and biomass. However, realizing this potential would necessitate an immense effort from the government in terms of providing incentives as well as developing and implementing systemically effective policies.

**Citation:** John, C.A.; Tan, L.S.; Tan, J.; Kiew, P.L.; Shariff, A.M.; Abdul Halim, H.N. Selection of Renewable Energy in Rural Area Via Life Cycle Assessment-Analytical Hierarchy Process (LCA-AHP): A Case Study of Tatau, Sarawak. *Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 11880. https://doi.org/10.3390/ su132111880

Academic Editors: Georgios Tsantopoulos and Evangelia Karasmanaki

Received: 28 September 2021 Accepted: 25 October 2021 Published: 27 October 2021

**Publisher's Note:** MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

**Copyright:** © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).

It was estimated that 4% of the region in Sabah and 15% of that in Sarawak still have no access to electricity. In response to this, the Malaysian government has set a goal of providing modern energy facilities to as many people as possible, particularly in the remote parts of Sarawak and Sabah [5]. Due to the geographic profile of such places, increasing the grid's electricity supply is a challenge. Power distribution is uneconomic due to uneven terrain and dense forest. High transmission loss is also an issue, implying that a grid power supply in remote areas is not possible [6]. On the contrary, off-grid electricity, which can be generated using renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, or hydro technologies, can be used to power remote areas. The available resources can boost rural electrification capacity and benefit the villagers as an economic strategy and a sustainable source of energy.

In rural areas, the local electrical authorities commonly opted for diesel-powered generators or, most recently, the hybrid-solar system as a quick and short-term fix to supply electricity to essential facilities such as remote schools, clinics, administrative offices, and small villages for a limited period of time per day [7]. Nonetheless, the Sarawak state government deserves credit for increasing the state-level electricity coverage from 79.2% to 90% between 2009 and 2015 [8]. To avoid this rural electrification initiative failing on a long-term basis, extensive planning in terms of implementation, technical and social difficulties must be done [9]. Therefore, energy planning analysis should be done in a more holistic manner, such as integrating the methods of the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) [10]. This would allow for a more comprehensive analysis, as well as the development of a new analytical tool to replace the conventional cost-benefit or techno-economic analysis.

The practical application of the LCA to product or process design and development in order to reduce aggregate environmental impacts is gaining traction, either through the modification of some input variables or a scenario analysis. Based on the LCA analysis of supercritical carbon dioxide extraction of caffeine from coffee beans, De Marco et al. [11] claimed that when a portion of the electricity at the grid was replaced with electricity produced by photovoltaic (PV) panels, the environmental impact could be reduced by 176% in terms of human health, 10.3% in terms of ecosystem diversity, and 16.1% in terms of resource availability. On the other hand, based on the LCA analysis conducted by Gallucci et al. [12], the authors reported that using PV energy as a renewable energy source in the production of hollow glass containers for food packaging was able to significantly reduce the global warming potential.

Likewise, MCDM has been implemented in recent years to evaluate many solutions to real-world problems relating to policy and strategy [13]. Hassan et al. [14] used a multicriteria decision-making tool in the form of the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) in order to analyze renewable generation sources in Saudi Arabia. A similar approach was also taken by Algarín et al. [15] in evaluating the renewable energy sources of rural areas in the Caribbean region of Colombia. A study was done by Das [16] that integrated the AHP and Quality Function Deployment (QFD) methods in order to determine the most viable renewable energy source for the state of Maharashtra. Hilorme et al. [17] developed a decision-making model for introducing energy-saving technologies based on the AHP. Zhang et al. [18] studied the economic development of the biomass energy industry in the Heilongjiang province based on the AHP. Nevertheless, the application of the combined LCA-MDCM methodologies for the analysis of renewable energy in an Asian context is limited, with Ren et al. [19] evaluating the sustainability of renewable fuel production, i.e., bioethanol. Hence, in this study, a robust systematic evaluation of renewable energy systems, using the integrated LCA-AHP methodologies, was expanded for the analysis of the Asian regions, particularly Malaysia, in order to promote the sustainable development of zero-carbon technology.

In recent years, several studies have been conducted to assess the current state of renewable energy in Malaysia. According to Hannan et al. [5], the rural electrification effort in Malaysia requires more attention in order to contribute to the country's future energy security and sustainability. Based on a study by Basri et al. [20], the abundance of renewable energy resources in Malaysia could potentially produce a stable supply of renewable energy. Despite this, there is no clear approach for choosing the most suitable type of renewable energy to meet the complicated economic, social, and environmental requirements.

Unsystematic decision making in the determination of the best renewable energy that can satisfy the needs of each individual rural location could hamper the successful implementation of the rural electrification initiative. Various elements, including environmental, engineering and economic factors, must be considered in order to overcome this. The application of the Life Cycle Assessment-Analytical Hierarchy Process (LCA-AHP) as a decision-making tool would allow for a comprehensive evaluation that could take such considerations into account. Tatau in Bintulu, Sarawak, was chosen as the case study for this study.

This research aims to characterize pollutant emissions and to determine the cost of generating electricity using different renewable energy systems. The environmental impact of different renewable energy systems was determined using the LCA method while the best renewable energy for Tatau, Bintulu from a combined engineering, environmental and economic perspective was evaluated using the AHP method. The findings of this study would provide a systematic process for determining the most appropriate renewable energy system for the rural area of Tatau, Sarawak. This approach will be critical for the authorities that are responsible for breaking down the multi-perspective criteria that may be used in the future system design.

#### **2. Materials and Methods**

#### *2.1. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)*

The LCA was used to determine the environmental impact of the renewable energy sources. In this study, the LCA data for each renewable energy system was extracted from sources in the literature in order to reflect the global warming potential (GWP) and acidification potential (AP) as their respective environmental factor score. GWP is correlated to greenhouse gas emissions, and it is an indication of the system's potential contribution to climate change. Meanwhile, the AP could indicate the environmental impact of the system as it relates to the acidification of water bodies and soil [21]. This LCA approach, which was based on ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 [22], was comprised of four steps, as shown in Figure 1. The first step was to define the goal and scope of the project. This measure determined the objective, system boundaries, functional unit and assumptions. Then there was the life cycle inventory (LCI), which involved data collection from all stages within the life cycle boundary, including the input, intermediate processes, and output. The third step was the life cycle impact assessment (LCIA), whereby the potential impact on the environment by the system was evaluated. Lastly, the data was interpreted based on the goal and scope definitions, as well as the LCI and LCIA data. The vital points were assessed and suggestions for future improvements were made.

**Figure 1.** Framework of the life cycle assessment (LCA).

#### 2.1.1. Goal and Scope Definition

This study focuses on the potential electrification of the rural area of Tatau, Bintulu using renewable energy. The goal of this assessment was to determine the overall impact of selecting the different renewable energy systems that were evaluated in this study, which included solar, wind, biomass and mini-hydro energy, for every 50 MJ/day of energy output. This is equivalent to a total of 13.89 kWh/day of electricity, which was sufficient to power an estimated 25 houses in Tatau, Sarawak, with an average of 2 MJ/day per household of the rural community [23]. Tatau is a district in Bintulu, Sarawak, with a total land size of 4945.80 km2 and a population of approximately 25,000 people. The economic background of Tatau mostly involves the timber and agricultural industries. The rural areas of Tatau are only travelable via timber routes and palm estate paths, one of them being Kakus road [24].

Jong et al. [25] found that Tatau has an abundance of potential for renewable energy due to its strategic location relative to the renewable resources, reasonable distance to road access, considerable population and mild land slope. However, they only focused on evaluating the potential of renewable energy for Tatau, and several other locations in Sarawak, based on geographical data. Therefore, the evaluation that was done in this study aimed to further evaluate the potential renewable energy sources that could be sustainable for rural areas in terms of engineering feasibility, environmental impact, and economic feasibility.

For the four renewable energy systems under evaluation, the environmental impact was assessed from the point of manufacture (gate) to the point of end-of-life (grave). This included the stages of component manufacturing, construction, operation, maintenance, and finally, disposal. Figure 2 illustrates the system boundaries for the renewable energy systems.

**Figure 2.** System boundaries for all alternatives in this study.

The energy consumptions and the materials consumed throughout the system boundaries for each renewable energy system were used as inputs in this study. As shown in Figure 2, the system boundary is made up of four stages of processes: production, construction, usage and end-of-life. The production stage of renewable energy started with the extraction of raw materials for the manufacturing of components and their assembly. This includes the assembly of panels, mounting systems, cables, and other components that are required to generate sufficient amounts of electricity. At this stage, only the main materials and quantities required for the production were defined.

Meanwhile, in the construction stage, local land routes and maritime deliveries were considered as the means of system transportations to the site. This study did not take into account transportation from outside of the country, as the energy system could be procured from any country, but the entry route to Tatau is consistent, which is through its port. According to Google Maps, the distance for local land transportation from Bintulu's nearest port to the rural area of Tatau was 63 km. The energy consumption during the construction and installation of the foundation, structures and fencing were also included in this stage.

The usage stage of the system involved the demand for auxiliary electricity when necessary. Scheduled maintenance of the system was included as it was vital to inspect its performance and maintain the system's efficiency. This stage also took into consideration any necessary repairs or replacements during the course of its use.

The final phase of the system was the end-of-life stage, which included deconstruction, transportation, recycling and reuse where applicable, and waste processing. The aim was to evaluate the impact of waste recycling and disposal on the environment. It was estimated that the system has a lifespan of 25 years.

#### 2.1.2. Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) Scope Definition

The aim of this step was to extract the relevant environmental indicator from the results of the inventory analysis. The impact classification included global warming potential (GWP) and acidification potential (AP). The characterization factors were taken from the literature [26,29–31].

#### *2.2. Simulation of HOMER Pro*

This study used HOMER Pro version 3.11.2 simulation software to design an optimize a renewable-energy-electrification system for the case study area, i.e., Tatau, Sarawak. The information and details of the actual location served as the input data for the simulation. The details included the renewable resources of the alternatives evaluated, which were solar irradiation, wind speed, biomass resource, and stream flow with regards to the load profile of the case study area. The information was obtained from the coordinates of Tatau, Sarawak. Next, the system was designed based on the specifications and costs of the components that were obtained from sources in the literature and previous project data. The results from the HOMER Pro simulation provided the relevant costs required, which included the capital cost as well as the operation and management costs [32]. The flow chart of the use of HOMER for the optimization process of the proposed renewable energy system is shown in Figure 3.

In terms of load profiles, the average electric consumption for the case study area of Tatau, Sarawak was assumed to be 50 MJ/day or 13.89 kWh/day, based on the average household energy consumption. It is also worth noting that the assumed load profile was based on a working day during the dry season of the year. The energy consumption profile may differ from the input load profile during other seasons.

**Figure 3.** Flowchart of HOMER Pro simulation method.

#### *2.3. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)*

The initial phase of the AHP involved the division of the multiplex problem into several levels of a hierarchy [33]. The topmost level of this hierarchy represented the main goal of a decision maker. The second level represented the evaluated criteria, and the bottom level corresponded to the alternatives that were under consideration. In some cases, sub-criteria can be considered under the main decision criteria in order to incorporate additional problem-specific decision levels. Following that, pairwise comparison was performed by weighing and ranking the priorities and alternatives. Saaty [34] advocated for the use of measurements on a scale of 1 to 9 and the eigenvector approach for this comparison. This pairwise comparison could be executed on both the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the alternative energy sources.

The outcome of these steps helped to forecast the impact of each alternative on the overall goal of the hierarchy decision. It also helped to distinguish competing criteria and eventually rank them according to their priorities. Following that, the data were examined in order to identify inconsistencies in the judgements made. As the result obtained may have been subjective, this consistency check was an important step in the AHP method [14]. The final stage of this approach was to evaluate the scores of each criterion, sub-criterion, and lastly, alternative.

#### AHP Model

A hierarchical structure was developed in this study which incorporated four levels: goal, main criteria, sub-criteria and alternatives.

**Figure 4.** AHP model for this study.

#### **3. Results**

#### *3.1. Environmental Impacts of Renewable Energy Alternatives*

Table 1 shows the pollutants emitted by the renewable energy sources that were evaluated in this study, namely solar, wind, biomass, and mini-hydro energy. The pollutants that contributed to the impact assessed in the LCA boundary of this study, which were GWP and AP, were included in the results. The pollutant emissions were classified into four stages within the gate-to-grave boundary of manufacturing, construction, usage and end-of-life.

**Table 1.** Pollutant emissions of solar energy system [35,36]; wind energy system [35,37,38]; biomass energy system [39,40]; and mini-hydro energy system [41,42].

Based on the aggregated pollutants, the GWP and AP of the renewable energy alternatives are shown in Figure 5. The results showed that solar energy had the greatest impact in terms of GWP and AP, followed by biomass energy and wind energy. Mini-hydro energy exhibited the lowest environmental impact of the four renewable energy sources that were evaluated. Figure 6 shows the percentage of environmental impact contribution in order to further analyze which stage within the gate-to-grave scope was responsible for the GWP and AP emission levels. A significant portion of the aggregated pollutants from solar and wind energy came from the manufacturing stage of the system. According to Mulvaney [43], this was due to the high energy consumption of the solar panel manufacturing process in particular. The processing of raw silicon requires a huge amount of energy as the process involves high temperatures that contribute significantly to carbon emissions. Similarly, the manufacturing phase of the wind energy system requires heating and cooling processes for the fabrication of turbines [44,45]. While the manufacturing stage contributed less to the environmental impact of mini-hydro energy, the construction stage accounted for a significant portion of the pollutants in this system. Concrete production and the transportation of rocks for the construction of dams and tunnels were among the major contributors to the pollutant emissions of a mini-hydro energy system [46]. Biomass energy, on the other hand, was found to emit a higher percentage of pollutants during the usage stage when compared to the other evaluated stages in the system boundary. This could be due to the release of pollutants during the operation of the system as a result of biomass combustion [40].

**Figure 5.** Impact assessment results of the renewable energy alternatives.

#### *3.2. Cost for Electricity Generation*

Based on the HOMER Pro Simulation, it was found that solar and wind energy demanded the highest costs in terms of building and operating the energy system, with an estimated total of US \$14,821.01 and US \$14,626.00, respectively. The capital costs for both energy systems were significantly higher due to the expensive materials needed to manufacture the energy systems [47,48]. It was also noted that, according to the simulation, the operational and maintenance costs of a biomass energy system was the highest, at approximately US \$5,447.09. This was due to the cost of replacing the electrical generator over the course of a year. The replacement was necessary to maintain the efficiency of the system in meeting the electrical load demand [49]. Table 2 shows the summary of the costs needed for renewable energy alternatives in this study, which were simulated using the HOMER Pro simulation software version 3.11.2.

**Figure 6.** Percentage of emission contribution.

**Table 2.** Summary of cost \* needed for renewable energy alternatives.

\* The currency exchange rate used was US\$1 = RM4.16.

#### *3.3. Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP)*

The results of the environmental impact study and the costs from LCA and HOMER Pro simulation from the previous section yielded the score for the GWP, AP, capital cost, and operational and maintenance cost sub-criteria of the AHP model in Figure 4. In this section, the remaining sub-criteria data were analyzed based on sources in the literature from various studies. The results of various studies were compared to determine the data deviation and average value. Figure 7 shows a summary of the land requirements for each renewable energy alternative that was investigated in this study.

**Figure 7.** Land requirement of the renewable energy alternatives [50–57].

Biomass energy required the most land in terms of site area, with an average of 7000 m2/kWh. This was because the biomass resource required a large receiving and processing area [58]. Other studies revealed highly variable land sizes due to the use of different technologies with varying equipment sizes to process the biomass resource. As a result of this finding, it was observed that solar energy was the most sustainable renewable energy in terms of land requirement, as it required the least amount of land to build the energy system. This was largely due to the fact that the components of the energy system were small and did not take up much space [59]. Figure 8 shows the availability of resources for all renewable energy alternatives. The results showed that solar energy was leading in terms of its resource availability in Malaysia, with a generation potential as high as 6500 MW due to the high annual solar irradiance of the country [60]. This was followed by mini-hydro energy, with the capacity of 28.9 MW. The high annual rainfall and river flow in the proximity of the case study area were deemed as advantageous for the mini-hydro energy system [61].

**Figure 8.** Resource availability of the renewable energy alternatives [32,58,62,63].

In terms of resource availability, solar energy was the most suitable type of renewable energy with the highest generation potential. Wind energy, on the other hand, was the least suitable as the wind speed in the case study area was not sufficient to meet the electrical load demand. This was compounded by the high variability of wind speeds throughout the year in Malaysia, which was not ideal for the output efficiency [48].

Technological maturity was the next sub-criterion under the engineering perspective. Figure 9 shows the maturity of renewable energy alternatives in Malaysia based on the total number of projects completed in the past [59,64–66]. The number of projects considered in this study referred to projects that were initiated under the Malaysian Government's Small Renewable Energy Programme (SREP) in order to promote small-scale renewable electricity in the country. The result showed that solar energy had the most projects in Malaysia in the past, with a total of 38 successful projects. This indicated that solar energy was the most established and reliable technology, which was also supported by Tang et al. [67], who found that this energy system had a high installation capacity compared to the other alternatives. Meanwhile, wind energy was considered to be the least matured technology with a low number of projects in Malaysia. This was due to numerous projects breaking down during operation, which raised concerns about their reliability and longterm prospects [68].

Another sub-criterion under the engineering criteria was the efficiency of the system. Figure 10 shows the efficiency of the renewable energy alternatives. When compared to other resources, mini-hydro energy had the highest output efficiency with an average 67% efficiency. This was largely due to the availability of water flow throughout the day. The high annual rainfall and river flow also contributed to this, as the abundance of resources benefitted the output efficiency of the energy system [61]. On the other hand, solar energy displayed the lowest efficiency at 11% compared to other alternatives. This was because of the low purity of the materials used in photovoltaic cells, which resulted in the low overall efficiency of the solar energy system [69].

**Figure 9.** Technology maturity of the renewable energy alternatives [59,64–66].

**Figure 10.** Efficiency of the renewable energy alternatives [70–78].

Following the data collection for the sub-criteria of the AHP model, the importance scores for the criteria and sub-criteria were compiled and normalized. This step was conducted based on the AHP model depicted in Figure 4 from the top level, which was the goal, to the bottom layer of alternatives.

In terms of land requirement, the larger the land area required to build the energy system, the lower the importance score. In this case, solar energy was given the highest priority over the others. The calculation of the score was based on Saaty's importance score of 1–9. The pairwise comparison data were then tabulated and normalized in order to produce the priority vectors shown in Table 4.

**Table 3.** Definition of importance score and literature sources for environmental, engineering and economic sub-criteria.

**Figure 11.** Overall importance score for sub-criteria [14,15,79–83].

**Figure 12.** Importance score for main criteria [14,15,79–81].

**Table 4.** Priority vector with regards to land requirement sub-criterion.

The same techniques were used for other sub-criteria in the AHP model. Following that, the linear multiplication of the priority weightings for each segment within all levels for each alternative was conducted in order to determine the final importance score with regards to the AHP model's goal of determining the best renewable energy source in Tatau, Sarawak. Table 5 shows the overall importance scores for all renewable energy alternatives and Table 6 tabulates the final importance scores of all energy sources with respect to the goal of the AHP model.

**Table 5.** The overall important scores for all renewable energy alternatives.

**Table 6.** The final importance scores of all energy alternatives with respect to the goal of the AHP model.

The final importance scores for solar, wind, biomass and mini-hydro energy were 0.299, 0.200, 0.230 and 0.271, respectively. In terms of the overall criteria under consideration, which were environmental, engineering, and economic perspectives, solar energy was found to be more sustainable than the other alternatives for the region of Tatau, Sarawak. The main reason for this was the engineering superiority of solar energy over the other alternatives, especially with regards to the resource availability of solar energy in Malaysia. The high solar irradiance of Malaysia outweighed the other resources, as the country is strategically located to have an ideal climate for solar energy [67]. Despite this, other alternatives could still operate within the minimum requirement of the electrical load in the case study area. In terms of technological maturity, the numerous successful solar energy projects in the past have proved that this type of energy system is highly reliable and established in the Malaysia region [68]. This had a significant impact on the decision as other alternatives were either still in development or had failed during previous deployment, thereby casting serious doubt on that energy system, particularly the wind energy system [84].

Despite its excellent engineering characteristics, solar energy underperformed in terms of environmental and economic perspectives, as it received a relatively low importance score in this area. Further research and development can be done in order to discover more affordable and environmentally friendly solar energy systems [84]. This can further mitigate the high energy consumption required for the manufacturing of solar energy components, which is energy intensive and may still rely on fossil fuel sources [85].

#### **4. Conclusions**

The integrated LCA-AHP approach was successfully applied to determine the best type of renewable energy for the rural area of Tatau, Sarawak. The gate-to-grave LCA was used to assess the manufacturing, construction, usage and end-of-life stages of the renewable energies under evaluation, which were solar, wind, biomass, and mini-hydro energy. Global warming potential (GWP) and acidification potential (AP) were the two environmental impacts that were evaluated. Solar energy had the greatest impact in terms of both GWP and AP, with 104 kg CO2 eq and 528 kg SO2 eq, respectively. The least impact among the alternatives was from mini-hydro energy, with a GWP of 10 kg CO2 eq and an AP of 42 kg SO2 eq, indicating that this type of renewable energy was the most sustainable environmental option. In this study, an AHP model was developed in order to determine the best renewable energy source for Tatau, Sarawak based on three criteria, namely environmental, engineering and economic. The hierarchical structure provided an easier route for evaluation, which went through every level, from the goal of the project to the criteria, then to the sub-criteria, and finally to the alternatives. The obtained AHP results differed from the LCA results in that solar energy scored the highest priority weight of 0.299, compared to 0.200, 0.230 and 0.271 for wind, biomass and minihydro energy, respectively. Although solar energy was not the most sustainable option from an environmental standpoint, the engineering aspect of the energy system was superior compared to the other alternatives, which heavily influenced the decision model. Prior to the actual start of the project, the decision-making process in the energy planning sector is crucial in the determination of the ideal energy system. The LCA-AHP framework in this study was proven to be robust in comparing the renewable energies that were under evaluation. With the input of coordinates for a specific area of interest into the simulation

software, this framework can also applicable be for other locations, be it in Malaysia or other countries.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, all authors; Methodology, C.A.J. and J.T.; Software, C.A.J.; Validation, L.S.T., P.L.K. and J.T.; Formal Analysis, C.A.J.; Investigation, C.A.J. and L.S.T.; Resources, L.S.T.; Data Curation, C.A.J. and J.T.; Writing—Original Draft Preparation, C.A.J., J.T. and L.S.T.; Writing—Review & Editing, J.T., P.L.K., A.M.S. and H.N.A.H.; Visualization, C.A.J. and P.L.K.; Supervision, L.S.T.; Project Administration, L.S.T.; Funding Acquisition, L.S.T., A.M.S. and H.N.A.H. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Funding:** This research was jointly funded by Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS via the Joint Research Project (JRP8) funding, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia via Matching Grant (PY/2021/00347 & PY/2021/00272) and Universiti Malaysia Perlis (Grant No: 9023-00022).

**Institutional Review Board Statement:** Not applicable.

**Informed Consent Statement:** Not applicable.

**Data Availability Statement:** The authors confirm that all data generated or analysed to support the findings are included in the published article. The raw data that supports the findings of this study is available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.

#### **References**

## *Article* **Is Environment a Strategic Priority of the Leading Energy Companies? Evidence from Mission Statements**

**Dmitry A. Ruban 1,2,\* , Natalia N. Yashalova 3 and Vladimir A. Ermolaev 4**

**Abstract:** Hydrocarbon production, electricity transmission, and other energy-related activities affect the environment. It is expected that environmental issues can be among strategic priorities summarized in mission statements of energy companies. The present analysis of the mission statements of 43 leading energy companies implies that these issues are considered by 36% of the top energy companies and 37% of the fastest-growing energy companies. These considerations often co-occur with attention to a company's higher tasks and image. Most often, production ecologization is posed as a priority. The fastest-growing companies pay insufficient attention to climate changes. Conceptually, reflection of environmental issues in mission statements depends on the managerial awareness of these issues; additionally, the development of separate sustainability strategies may make environmental priorities somewhat marginal. The 'greening' of mission statements of energy companies is recommended.

**Keywords:** business communication; energy corporations; greening; responsibility; strategic management

#### **1. Introduction**

Environmental issues (climate change, pollution by hydrocarbons, heavy metals, and microplastics, land degradation, biodiversity loss, deforestation, etc.) cannot be ignored by contemporary business leaders. This almost philosophical idea is developed in numerous works, including those by Bukhari et al. [1], Çop et al. [2], Lawler and Worley [3], Lenka and Kar [4], and Lozano [5]. On the one hand, the biggest corporations are often responsible for environmental damage, but they also suffer from natural resource impoverishment and an ecologically-altered workforce. On the other hand, environmental issues are on the global agenda, and showing awareness of them contributes to a positive image of corporations in the eyes of customers, business partners, and states. In other words, environmental issues are linked to both risks and opportunities. A few years after the 'Management 2.0' concept was proposed and modern managers claimed that they to aim to achieve socially-important higher tasks under this framework [6], Lawler and Worley [3] demonstrated that environmental higher tasks are also a must for business leaders caring about the sustainable growth of their corporations. Recently, Ji and Miao [7] argued that environmental responsibility is of utmost importance for achieving really successful, innovative business development.

The leading energy companies of the world are expected to be especially tied to environmental issues. A broad spectrum of relevant ideas can be found, particularly, in the

**Citation:** Ruban, D.A.; Yashalova, N.N.; Ermolaev, V.A. Is Environment a Strategic Priority of the Leading Energy Companies? Evidence from Mission Statements. *Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/su13042192

Academic Editors: Antonio Boggia and Georgios Tsantopoulos

Received: 23 January 2021 Accepted: 12 February 2021 Published: 18 February 2021

**Publisher's Note:** MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

**Copyright:** © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).

works by Clerici and Gallanti [8], Dangelico and Pontrandolfo [9], Ezeonu [10], Fethi and Rahuma [11], Hashmi et al. [12], Hoffmann and Busch [13], Linn and McCormack [14], Morrow and Rondinelli [15], Raugei et al. [16], Sánchez–Ortiz et al. [17], and Smirnova and Rudenko [18]. Such companies are responsible for greenhouse gas emissions and seawater pollution, and these are also prone to developing eco-innovations and exploiting renewable energy sources. Surprisingly, the knowledge of corporate strategic treatment of environmental issues remains incomplete. Communication is vital in strategic management of organizations [19–21]. According to Steensen [22], the very type of organizational strategy chosen depends on how the strategic knowledge is communicated. Tuppen [23] and Tao and Wilson [24] emphasized the environmental aspect of corporate communication and stressed its importance, complexity, and challenges. In regard to the aforementioned factors, the documents explaining strategies of energy companies should treat the environment as a top priority.

Mission statements, which are brief, almost slogan-like summaries of strategic priorities, constitute an important channel of corporate communication. Their significance was shown by Pearce and David [25] in their already classical paper. During the three past decades, this channel has become an important research object [26,27]. Already in the pioneering works [25], attention was paid to how mission statements reflect environmental attitudes of corporations. However, the following research did not focus much on this topic. Baral and Pokharel [28] examined basic strategic documents of the largest global companies and discovered limited consideration of environmental issues. Garnett et al. [29] documented the improvement of mission statements through time in regard to how these statements take environmental sustainability into account. Molchanova et al. [30] stressed that the Russian energy corporations are more successful in posing eco-priorities. Yozgat and Karatas [31] established that less than a fifth of the leading Turkish companies have environmentally sensitive mission statements. It is also sensible to consider the work by Lenkova [32] that dealt specifically with energy companies.

The scarcity of literature on this potentially highly-important issue reveals a significant research gap: the knowledge of how mission statements of the world businesses reflect environmental issues remains incomplete, especially with regard to particular countries and industries. This gap and the relevant research question must be addressed for both theoretical and practical reasons. Theoretically, it is important to understand whether mission statements can serve as a channel for communicating the environmental priorities of energy companies. In practice, it is necessary to understand how the corporate communication policies of real companies can be improved to develop a bridge between energy leadership and environmental leadership. The present study aims at filling this gap via an examination of environmental issues in the mission statements of the world's leading energy companies. First, it is intended to document whether corporations from this important industry recognize environmental issues as a strategic priority deserving of being reflected in their mission statements and how they treat these issues. Second, the approach of a mission statement analysis for finding the environment-related notions is proposed. Third, 'greening' is conceptualized and related to corporate strategies and policy. The research question is how common and 'deep' is consideration of environmental issues in the mission statements of the leading energy companies. This study is essentially empirical, and it answers this question with analysis of the collected mission statements. This study also fill a gap by linking the understanding of business communication of environmental issues in the industry with significant environmental impacts.

#### **2. Materials and Methods**

#### *2.1. Research Direction*

A mission statement is thought to be an important tool for effective corporate communication [25,27,33–37]. On the one hand, it summarizes the very essence of a company's strategy, and, thus, it clarifies the direction(s) this company chooses to grow towards, i.e., it indicates strategic priorities. On the other hand, mission statements present the

preferred business strategy in a very compact way, which is ideal for communication of the noted priorities to managerial and other staff, customers, partners, competitors, media, governments, and the general public. Such communication is especially important in the case of big corporations with significant social, political, and environmental impacts. It is also known that mission statements directly and sometimes significantly influence business performance because they permit managers to identify and to maintain priorities, employees to understand and to share these priorities, and third parties to find key points for successful collaboration. The relevant evidence is provided in numerous publications, including the works by Atrill et al. [38], Bart and Baetz [39], Bart et al. [40], Cortés–Sánchez and Rivera [41], Gharleghi et al. [42], Jovanov Marjanova and Sofijanova [43], Mersland et al. [44], and Sheaffer et al. [45]. Generally, mission statements reflect managerial opinions of their own company. Although these may only be formulated with the aim of maintaining a better company image, these statements remain 'attached' to the strategy and to managerial thoughts.

Mission statements are included in company strategic documents and official reports. These are often provided on the official web-pages and, thus, they become available for analysis [29,46–48]. In the latter case, mission statements should be distinguished from design and promotion components of web-pages because the former are official strategic statements. For the same reason, analysis of mission statements that are available on-line differs from examinations of web-page content.

One of the main directions in the study of mission statements is conducting content analysis aimed at registering the presence/absence of several standard components [26]. These components were proposed originally by Pearce and David [25] and then updated slightly by David [49]. A total of nine components are distinguished (see below). A given mission statement may include one to all nine of these standard components. The presence of some components can be registered only formally. One example of this is when a company states that it appreciates its customers. However, in the other cases, the presence of components is marked by extensive explanations. For instance, a company states that it aims to conquer the USA and Canada, and these countries are thought to be its principal markets. Generally, the content analysis of mission statements is a qualitative analytical procedure that requires deciphering of the meaning of each word and each expression in relation to the standard components.

Reflection of environmental issues in corporate mission statements was addressed by several previous researchers [25,30,31]. These issues seem to be closely related to the philosophy component, and their deeper understanding requires special ('non-standard'), more detailed component analysis [30].  Indeed, this is often done for a better company image, although environmental priorities can really be part of the 'core' of strategies for some, if not many companies.

#### *2.2. Sample*

The present study focuses on the leading energy companies, which include hydrocarbon production companies, power generation companies, electricity transmission companies, etc. Such a broad meaning of the term 'energy company' matches its use in some highly-reputed company rankings (see below). Provisionally, the leading energy companies were compiled from two related, but essentially different rankings. The first ranking includes the top global energy companies on the basis of their business performance [50]. The second ranking comprises the fastest-growing energy companies that demonstrated the biggest growth over three years [51]. These rankings reflect the state of the world energy industry in 2019, and both lists were provided by the high-reputed 'S&P Global Platts', which is a division of the 'S&P Global' agency.

Fifty companies from each ranking are considered (a few exist in both rankings). Consideration of a larger number of companies is not sensible for two reasons. First, only the 50 fastest-growing energy companies are listed in the second ranking, and, thus, the information taken from the first ranking should be comparable in size. Alternatively, the sample would be unbalanced. The top energy companies and the fastest-growing energy companies both deserve to be judged, although they reflect different approaches to achieve success. Second, it is expected that mission statements of the less important companies differ from those of the world's leading companies [52]. Then, the official web-page of each selected company was checked in order to find its mission statement. In rare cases, clear mission statements are available only on the web-pages facilitating search of business information, i.e., outside the official web-pages. Although Pearce and David [25] originally attributed various strategic documents to mission statements, only documents specifically named as being mission statements or looking as such are considered in the present study. sample would be unbalanced. The top energy companies and the fastest-growing energy companies both deserve to be judged, although they reflect different approaches to achieve success. Second, it is expected that mission statements of the less important companies differ from those of the world's leading companies [52]. Then, the official web-page of each selected company was checked in order to find its mission statement. In rare cases, clear mission statements are available only on the web-pages facilitating search of business information, i.e., outside the official web-pages. Although Pearce and David [25] originally attributed various strategic documents to mission statements, only documents specifically named as being mission statements or looking as such are considered in the present study. Mission statements were found for half of the top energy companies and less than a half of the fastest-growing energy companies (Figure 1). These were collected for a total

companies, etc. Such a broad meaning of the term 'energy company' matches its use in some highly-reputed company rankings (see below). Provisionally, the leading energy companies were compiled from two related, but essentially different rankings. The first ranking includes the top global energy companies on the basis of their business performance [50]. The second ranking comprises the fastest-growing energy companies that demonstrated the biggest growth over three years [51]. These rankings reflect the state of the world energy industry in 2019, and both lists were provided by the high-reputed

Fifty companies from each ranking are considered (a few exist in both rankings). Consideration of a larger number of companies is not sensible for two reasons. First, only the 50 fastest-growing energy companies are listed in the second ranking, and, thus, the information taken from the first ranking should be comparable in size. Alternatively, the

*Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 4 of 19

'S&P Global Platts', which is a division of the 'S&P Global' agency.

Mission statements were found for half of the top energy companies and less than a half of the fastest-growing energy companies (Figure 1). These were collected for a total of 43 companies (Supplement S1). This sample seems to be appropriate for subsequent analysis, as it represents the communicated ([22]) strategic priorities of the leading companies, although they either demonstrate high performance or rapid growth (or both) (Figure 2). Only English versions of the mission statements were considered, although some companies do not represent English-speaking countries. Supposedly, corporate communication in English is not a problem for the world's leading companies, irrespective of their national affinity. It should be added that the mission statements were treated in this work anonymously to avoid occasional violation of corporate reputations. of 43 companies (Supplement S1). This sample seems to be appropriate for subsequent analysis, as it represents the communicated ([22]) strategic priorities of the leading companies, although they either demonstrate high performance or rapid growth (or both) (Figure 2). Only English versions of the mission statements were considered, although some companies do not represent English-speaking countries. Supposedly, corporate communication in English is not a problem for the world's leading companies, irrespective of their national affinity. It should be added that the mission statements were treated in this work anonymously to avoid occasional violation of corporate reputations.

**Figure 1.** Relative distribution of environmental concerns in mission statements of the leading en-**Figure 1.** Relative distribution of environmental concerns in mission statements of the leading energy companies.

ergy companies.

**Figure 2.** Distribution of the analyzed companies by the basic parameters of their selection on the basis of information from [50,51]. In the both cases, the horizontal axis indicates the considered companies ranged according to the parameter show on the vertical axis. The company names are not disclosed to avoid occasional violation of company reputations. **Figure 2.** Distribution of the analyzed companies by the basic parameters of their selection on the basis of information from [50,51]. In the both cases, the horizontal axis indicates the considered companies ranged according to the parameter show on the vertical axis. The company names are not disclosed to avoid occasional violation of company reputations.

#### *2.3. Analytical Procedures 2.3. Analytical Procedures*

The present analysis employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Generally, the former are linked to interpretation of text passages, and the latter are linked to calculation of component frequencies in the entirety of mission statements. The latter serves as a factual basis, gathering of which is also a part of the present study (see above). The present analysis employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches. Generally, the former are linked to interpretation of text passages, and the latter are linked to calculation of component frequencies in the entirety of mission statements. The latter serves as a factual basis, gathering of which is also a part of the present study (see above).

The content of each mission statement was analyzed chiefly qualitatively, but in-depth as follows. All words and expressions relevant to environmental issues were identified (Supplement S1). As this study focuses on environment-related strategic priorities, the only relevant, 'green' mission statements were the subject of deeper analysis. The content of the mission statements considering environmental issues was analyzed in regard to the standard components of Pearce and David [25] and David [49]. The presence of the nine standard components, namely customers, markets, image, products and/or services, technology, survival, growth, and profitability, philosophy, self-understanding, and employees was checked via word-by-word interpretation. This was necessary to understand the general context of the occurrence of environmental priorities. The content of each mission statement was analyzed chiefly qualitatively, but in-depth as follows. All words and expressions relevant to environmental issues were identified (Supplement S1). As this study focuses on environment-related strategic priorities, the only relevant, 'green' mission statements were the subject of deeper analysis. The content of the mission statements considering environmental issues was analyzed in regard to the standard components of Pearce and David [25] and David [49]. The presence of the nine standard components, namely customers, markets, image, products and/or services, technology, survival, growth, and profitability, philosophy, self-understanding, and employees was checked via word-by-word interpretation. This was necessary to understand the general context of the occurrence of environmental priorities.

Then, the considered environmental issues were examined specifically. For this purpose, the classification of such issues in mission statements proposed earlier by Molchanova et al. [30] was employed, with certain modifications (with regard to the specific features of the collected mission statements of the leading energy companies). The presence of a total of five specific, environment-related components was checked, namely care for nature, production ecologization, ecological standards, climate change, and eco-responsibility. The average number of standard and specific components, and Then, the considered environmental issues were examined specifically. For this purpose, the classification of such issues in mission statements proposed earlier by Molchanova et al. [30] was employed, with certain modifications (with regard to the specific features of the collected mission statements of the leading energy companies). The presence of a total of five specific, environment-related components was checked, namely care for nature, production ecologization, ecological standards, climate change, and eco-responsibility. The average number of standard and specific components, and the frequency of occurrence of each component in the analyzed components were calculated.

The importance of various spatial dimensions for managers was established and conceptualized recently by Weinfurtner and Seidl [53]. Time also matters to managers, especially in regard to diversification [54], projects [55], and innovations [56,57]. Future

orientation may be found in many mission statements [58]. It appears sensible to establish the spatio-temporal context of the consideration of environmental issues in the analyzed mission statements. For this purpose, we checked whether phrases bearing environmentrelated words and expressions deal with local, national, or global issues and treat them in past, present, or future perspectives. Indeed, spatial and temporal contexts can be indefinite in some cases. The frequencies of occurrence of each spatial and temporal context in the statements were calculated.

It appears intriguing to check how consideration of the environmental issues corresponds to consideration of the people's needs. Two reasons for such an analysis are as follows. First, it was found that social and environmental responsibilities have different importance [7]. One can even discern a company's 'competition' by their strategic priorities. Second, Pearce and David [25] did not recognize employees among their standard components, and this component appeared later, in the work by David [49]. Nonetheless, companies need to consider employees in their mission statements due to the general importance of social responsibility [59] and because employees are the target group of strategic corporate communication [60]. Moreover, Kopaneva [61] and Kopaneva and Sias [62] emphasized the efficacy of engagement of employees into company mission development. For the purposes of the present study, the consideration of employees (the employee component) and society (a part of the philosophy component) in the mission statements of all selected energy companies was established on the basis of information from Supplement S1. The distribution of these considerations was compared to those of environmental issues in order to judge their correspondence.

Finally, the mission statements were analyzed quantitatively with the 'WordItOut.com' engine. This created the so-called 'word clouds' depicting words from text passages in regard to their frequency. The 'world cloud' approach has become useful for finding text emphases [63–67]. For the present study, 'word clouds' were created for all mission statements of the top and fastest-growing energy companies, as well only for those considering environmental issues. Further comparison of these 'word clouds' sheds light on the importance of environment-related notions in the analyzed mission statements.

#### **3. Results**

#### *3.1. General Patterns*

Environmental issues were found in 36% of mission statements of the top energy companies and 37% of mission statements of the fastest-growing energy companies, which represent 18% and 15% of all leading companies, respectively (Figure 1). The former numbers were higher than the number of the world-class companies considering the environment in their basic strategic communications [28], which can be explained by the bigger relevance of energy business to environmental issues. Nonetheless, the environment seems to be a strategic priority for only about a third of all companies with mission statements. Both groups of the leading companies follow the trend of mission 'greening' comparably. Notably, the energy companies with 'green' missions represent different parts of the world (Asia, North America, and Europe) (Figure 3). Their relative concentration in the USA can be explained by the higher number of leading companies in this country. One should note the achievements of Thailand: two energy companies from this country are ranked among the leading companies, and the mission statements of the both consider the environment (Supplement S1).

The content of the mission statements of the leading mission companies differs substantially, and the combinations of the standard components also differ (Table 1). On average, both the top and fastest-growing energy companies include 5 components into their mission statements, which means these statements are not comprehensive, but are relatively well-developed. For the top energy companies, the most frequently occurring components are products/services and philosophy (100% of cases each) as well as image (67% of cases), and the least frequent are customers and employees (11% of cases each). For the fastest-growing energy companies, the most frequently occurring components are phi-

losophy (100% of cases) and image (86% of cases), and the least frequent is customers (14% of cases). The principal difference between these two groups of components is the much frequent presence of the employees component in the statements of the fastest-growing companies. All these lines of evidence imply that the general context of environment consideration in the analyzed mission statements is characterized by a moderately-diverse set of strategic priorities, with a preference for higher tasks and caring for an image. Too little attention to customers can be explained by the often-used B2B model of corporations providing energy to other enterprises. Moreover, societal needs are often posed as priorities (Supplement S1), and these are attributed to the philosophy component. This explains the low frequency of the customers component. *Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 7 of 19

**Figure 3.** National affinity of the leading energy companies with mission statements considering environmental issues (based on information from Supplement S1). **Figure 3.** National affinity of the leading energy companies with mission statements considering environmental issues (based on information from Supplement S1).

The content of the mission statements of the leading mission companies differs substantially, and the combinations of the standard components also differ (Table 1). On **Table 1.** Content of the mission statements considering environmental issues.

 Note: the order of the companies (labeled A, B, . . . ) differs from their order in Supplement S1, i.e., the missions are treated anonymously to avoid occasional violation of company reputations.

 The average number of specific components is the same for both groups of energy companies, although the statements of the fastest-growing companies are slightly less diverse: 86% of them consist of a single component in comparison to 67% of the top companies. In the mission statements, the production of ecologization (including 'green' technological processes and 'clean' energy) is the most important issue. It is established in 56% of the statements of the top energy companies and 57% of the statements of the fastest-growing companies. Care for nature is relatively frequently found, and the ecological standards and especially the eco-responsibility are the least commonly found issues. Of special interest is a specific component such as climate change. This is addressed by 44% of the mission statements of the top energy companies and by no statements for the fastest-growing energy companies. Hypothetically, the top-performing ('stable') corporations have enough inertia to address the global agenda of climate change, whereas this issue is either too ambitious or simply disinteresting for the 'accelerating' businesses.

**Table 2.** Environmental issues considered in the mission statements.

Note: the order of the companies (labeled A, B, . . . ) differs from their order in Supplement S1, i.e., the missions are treated anonymously to avoid occasional violation of company reputations.

> Comparing the general context of environment consideration in the analyzed mission statements and the eco-content of the latter (Tables 1 and 2, see also explanations above), a kind of controversy is revealed. On the one hand, many leading companies pose higher tasks and care about their image. On the other hand, many of them do not consider the appealing and well-known issue of climate change, and do not mention a sense of ecoresponsibility. Undoubtedly, focusing on production ecologization is useful for having a better image, but this seems to be a too 'narrow' way of strategic eco-thinking. The controversy is especially striking in the case of the fastest-growing companies: one would expect diversification of environment-related priorities from them to gain a competitive advantage. It cannot be tested whether the noted controversy is the result of any deficiency in strategic thinking or inaccuracies of the statement writing, but to suppose that both are true seems to be reasonable.

#### *3.2. Spatio-Temporal Context*

Consideration of environmental issues in half of the analyzed mission statements demonstrates a certain spatio-temporal context (Table 3). Interestingly, the top energy companies are more space- and less time-focused than the fastest-growing companies. This can be explained by the fact that the best-performing corporations care more about their geographical dominance and less about their time frame due to their stability. In contrast, time means more to the rapidly-growing businesses.

**Table 3.** Spatio-temporal context of environmental issues considered in the mission statements.

Note: the order of the companies (labeled A, B, . . . ) differs from their order in Supplement S1, i.e., the missions are treated anonymously to avoid occasional violation of company reputations.

The leading energy companies tend to adjust environmental issues to the global and national scales (Table 3). None of the mission statements communicate about local environments, which is surprising because local environmental impacts of hydrocarbon production or power station work can be significant. As for the time, both present and future perspectives of environmental issues can be found (Table 3). While the former is preferred by the fastest-growing energy companies, the top companies are more futureoriented.

#### *3.3. Apparent People–Environment Alternative*

The reflection of environmental, societal, and employee-related priorities in the analyzed mission statements is somewhat peculiar (Table 4). Although they are not opposed directly, a very uncertain correspondence between them can be observed (Table 4).

The mission statements of the top energy companies deal with society in 52% of cases, environment in 36% of cases, and employees in only 12% of cases (Table 4). As for the fastest-growing energy companies, 53% of their mission statements deal with society, 37% of the statements deal with the environment, while employees are addressed in 42% of cases (Table 4). The companies belonging to both groups tend to relate social and environmental responsibilities, but the top companies concentrate on society, whereas the fastest-growing companies balance outer (community-related) and inner (employeerelated) social priorities. Moreover, the environment seems to be slightly less important than society and significantly more important than the staff for the top energy companies, whereas environment seems to be a bit less important than society and employees for the fastest-growing companies. In regard to the analyzed mission statements, it is possible to conclude that the nature 'costs' more than the workers for the top companies. Although this is a challenging and provocative proposition, it is confirmed by the findings of the present study and questions the social-versus-environment justice in the energy industry (at least, as seen in the mission statements).

**Table 4.** Consideration of employees, society, and the environment in all analyzed mission statements.

Note: each line corresponds to a given company in Supplement S1, the order of the companies differs from their order in Supplement S1, i.e., the missions are treated anonymously to avoid occasional violation of company reputations.

Although one would expect that caring for their corporate responsibility means equal attention towards both social and environmental responsibility, this is not supported by the findings (Table 4). Apparently, some managers responsible for mission development choose between social and environmental priorities and between 'our' people and 'them' in many cases. Such a choice is not only unexpected, but somewhat illogical. Although special investigations are necessary in order to understand its cause, it is possible to hypothesize that some companies either demonstrate a biased vision or they really face limited opportunities and need to choose which responsibility-related priorities to communicate. It

is also necessary to add that caring for the environment can be understood by some energy corporations as a simultaneous caring for people, and vice versa.

#### *3.4. 'Word Clouds'*

The 'word cloud' created for all top energy companies considered in the present study implies that their mission statements emphasize energy, whereas the use of words such as the 'environment' and 'climate' is marginal (Figure 4). The situation does not change when only the environment-related statements are considered (Figure 5). The 'world cloud' created for all fastest-growing energy companies implies that their mission statements have a more diverse focus, with significant attention towards safety and value (Figure 6). Moreover, one needs to note the relatively high frequency of the word 'environment'. When the only environment-related statements of these companies are considered, the word 'environmental' becomes even more accented than 'energy' (Figure 7). *Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 12 of 19 *Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 12 of 19

**Figure 4.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed top energy companies. **Figure 4.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed top energy companies. **Figure 4.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed top energy companies.

**Figure 5.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed top energy companies considering environmental issues. **Figure 5.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed top energy companies considering environmental issues. **Figure 5.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed top energy companies considering environmental issues.

*Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 13 of 19

**Figure 6.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed fastest-growing energy compa-**Figure 6.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed fastest-growing energy companies. nies.

**Figure 6.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of all analyzed fastest-growing energy compa-

13 of 19

**Figure 7.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed fastest-growing energy compa-**Figure 7.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed fastest-growing energy companies considering environmental issues. **Figure 7.** 'Word cloud' for the mission statements of the analyzed fastest-growing energy companies considering environmental issues.

The results of the 'word cloud' analysis stress differences between the top and fastest-growing energy companies. The latter are more concerned about environmental issues, as reflected by their mission statements. Moreover, it is necessary to add that simple The results of the 'word cloud' analysis stress differences between the top and fastest-growing energy companies. The latter are more concerned about environmental issues, as reflected by their mission statements. Moreover, it is necessary to add that simple notion of these issues does not make statements of the top companies substantially more eco-friendly. The results of the 'word cloud' analysis stress differences between the top and fastestgrowing energy companies. The latter are more concerned about environmental issues, as reflected by their mission statements. Moreover, it is necessary to add that simple notion of these issues does not make statements of the top companies substantially more eco-friendly.

notion of these issues does not make statements of the top companies substantially more

#### eco-friendly. **4. Discussion**

nies.

#### **4. Discussion** *4.1. General Interpretation*

nies considering environmental issues.

**4. Discussion** *4.1. General Interpretation* The results of the present analysis of the mission statements imply that the environment is only considered to be a strategic priority by some leading energy companies, and the environmental issues are understood rather 'narrowly'. However, the situation in this segment of the world economy is better than in other industries [28,29], similarly to *4.1. General Interpretation* The results of the present analysis of the mission statements imply that the environment is only considered to be a strategic priority by some leading energy companies, and the environmental issues are understood rather 'narrowly'. However, the situation in this segment of the world economy is better than in other industries [28,29], similarly to The results of the present analysis of the mission statements imply that the environment is only considered to be a strategic priority by some leading energy companies, and the environmental issues are understood rather 'narrowly'. However, the situation in this segment of the world economy is better than in other industries [28,29], similarly to what has been reported for Russia [30]. Moreover, attention to environment-related priorities raises new challenges like the apparent alternating between employee-related and environment-related priorities.

Generally, the collected evidence means the analyzed mission statements taken together are still far from the ideal corporate strategic treatment of environmental issues (of

course, the situation is much better in the case of some particular companies). This is a characteristic of both the top and fastest-growing energy companies. This finding can be explained differently. First, it is possible that some leading companies are too businessfocused and do not pay adequate attention to environmental responsibility. Second, it is possible that these companies prefer to focus on environmental issues in other strategic documents like sustainability reports. Third, it is also possible that their top managers responsible for strategy development and/or involved in mission statement writing are not well aware of environmental issues or do not have the necessary education to communicate about these issues properly. Although further investigations are necessary to choose between these explanations (hypothetically, all these matter), the problem with underrepresentation of environmental issues in the mission statements of the leading energy companies remains. This problem also appears to be even bigger, as these leading companies serve as examples to smaller players of the world energy industry.

Azad et al. [68] demonstrated how environmental management in energy companies can be improved, Ruka and Rashidirad [69] documented such an improvement, whereas Prechel and Istvan [70] demonstrated how internal company characteristics lead to disproportionality of environmental pollution. The present study contributes to this discourse by indicating certain weaknesses in the strategic communication of environmental corporate responsibility by the leading energy companies.

#### *4.2. Tentative Conceptualization*

In order to conceptualize the findings of this paper, a scheme of communication of environmental issues via mission statements is proposed (Figure 8). Managers responsible for strategy development may be directly aware of environmental issues (not necessarily directly related to her/his company). This is especially the case if these are new-generation managers that are always looking for higher tasks [3,6]. However, the activities of a given company may raise some environmental issues that cannot be ignored by even unaware managers, or the latter can be pressured into making changes by the broader public, media, or the state. As energy companies are closely tied to environmental issues, it would be difficult to them to avoid adding these issues to their company's agenda and reflecting them in their company's strategies. However, they need to choose the best way to do this. One option is to consider the environment as a top priority and to include this into the mission statement, which the quintessential company strategy. The results of the present study imply that just a bit more than a third of the leading energy companies pursue this option. Another option is to consider the environment somewhere in full-scale strategic documents or to limit its consideration to a separate sustainability strategy. Development of the latter is very typical for modern corporations, especially in the energy sector of the world economy [69]. The importance of these sustainability strategies is undisputable, but restriction of the environment-related priorities to only these issues makes these priorities marginal. The proposed scheme offers some other ways for corporate strategic treatment of environmental issues (Figure 8). One of them is linked to image concerns that seem to be very important in light of the findings of this study (see above). Apparently, such concerns encourage managers to reflect the environment in mission statements, irrespective of whether 'greening' is judged to be a top or marginal priority.

The proposed conceptualization is based on assumption that the leading energy companies both intend to carry out and communicate their strategies (shared strategies [22]). However, false (strategic communication, not intention), hidden (strategic intention, not communication), and especially learning (neither communication, nor intention) strategies [22] do not trigger urgent reflection of environmental issues in mission statements. The possibility cannot be excluded that some companies incline towards some of these strategies, which also explains the still insufficient 'greening' of the mission statements of the leading energy companies. Additionally, mission statements as a communication channel are linked to corporate dynamics capabilities and the relevant transformations and gaining a competitive advantage [71,72].

*Sustainability* **2021**, *13*, 2192 15 of 19

**Figure 8.** Complex ways for consideration of environmental issues in mission statements. **Figure 8.** Complex ways for consideration of environmental issues in mission statements.

#### The proposed conceptualization is based on assumption that the leading energy companies both intend to carry out and communicate their strategies (shared strategies *4.3. Policy Implications*

[22]). However, false (strategic communication, not intention), hidden (strategic intention, not communication), and especially learning (neither communication, nor intention) strategies [22] do not trigger urgent reflection of environmental issues in mission statements. The possibility cannot be excluded that some companies incline towards some of these strategies, which also explains the still insufficient 'greening' of the mission statements of the leading energy companies. Additionally, mission statements as a communication channel are linked to corporate dynamics capabilities and the relevant transformations and gaining a competitive advantage [71,72]. *4.3. Policy Implications* The results of the present study can be implied for the improvement of corporate policies in the energy industry. In particular, these results permit making several recommendations to energy company managers. First, the energy companies need to make their mission statements more eco-friendly. This would help to increase the awareness of 'greening' among managers, employees, and the entire business community, as well as to improve a company's corporate image. Second, environmental priorities should be treated broadly. In particular, the issues of climate change, eco-responsibility, etc. deserve mentioning. This would make the environmental agenda of each given company richer and 'deeper', as well as strengthen that company's eco-image. Third, the spatio-temporal context of the consideration of environmental issues needs improvement. The results of the present study can be implied for the improvement of corporate policies in the energy industry. In particular, these results permit making several recommendations to energy company managers. First, the energy companies need to make their mission statements more eco-friendly. This would help to increase the awareness of 'greening' among managers, employees, and the entire business community, as well as to improve a company's corporate image. Second, environmental priorities should be treated broadly. In particular, the issues of climate change, eco-responsibility, etc. deserve mentioning. This would make the environmental agenda of each given company richer and 'deeper', as well as strengthen that company's eco-image. Third, the spatio-temporal context of the consideration of environmental issues needs improvement. For instance, the local dimension of an environmental priority would make a given mission statement more appealing to society (due to its sensitivity to real problems), and consideration of corporate 'greening' in the past perspective would increase public trust towards a company (due to underlining the long-term, already-conducted pro-environmental behavior). Fourth, the 'nature or people' alternative (if it really exists) must be erased. Attention towards the environment should not diminish attention towards society and employees, and vice versa. Moreover, joint consideration of environment, society, and employees would have a synergetic positive effect on a company's image. Fifth, the development of sustainability strategies and consideration of environmental issues in lengthy strategic documents should not substitute for communication of environmental priorities via mission statements.

For instance, the local dimension of an environmental priority would make a given mission statement more appealing to society (due to its sensitivity to real problems), and consideration of corporate 'greening' in the past perspective would increase public trust towards a company (due to underlining the long-term, already-conducted pro-environmental behavior). Fourth, the 'nature or people' alternative (if it really exists) must be erased. Attention towards the environment should not diminish attention towards society and employees, and vice versa. Moreover, joint consideration of environment, society, and employees would have a synergetic positive effect on a company's image. Fifth, the development of sustainability strategies and consideration of environ-The leading energy companies need to care about the implementation of their mission statements. This is a highly-complex task that faces certain barriers and requires significant management commitment [73–75]. Some relevant problems in the hydrocarbon industry have been reported earlier by Sæverud and Skjærseth [76]. Broad public, media, and states should pay attention to companies' strategic statements and, particularly, to stimulating their 'greening'. As shown by the results of the present study, some companies provide excellent examples of such 'greening', and their efforts should be appreciated. The state may play a role in the improvement of corporate strategic statements, and this is especially the case for the countries launching nation-scale ecological projects [77,78]. Additionally, it is very probable that when representatives of the young generations, which demonstrate appropriate environmental awareness and readiness to act accordingly [79,80], become top managers, mission statements and relevant strategic actions will improve. Although some evidence of the young generations' environmental concerns is ambiguous [81,82], the modern education environment can really stimulate their pro-environmental thinking [83]. Indeed, 'cultivation' of such an environment in business schools developing future top managers is strongly desirable.

#### **5. Conclusions**

The analysis of the mission statements of the leading energy companies permits making three general conclusions. First, the number of the mission statements considering environmental issues remains limited, and the environmental priorities are often understood 'narrowly'. Second, the top energy companies focus on climate change more frequently than the fastest-growing energy companies. Third, there are some side effects of the consideration of environmental issues in the mission statements like the apparent alternating between protecting the environment and people. In practice, these findings indicate the remaining urgency of the improvement of the mission statements in the energy sector of the global economy, which is linked to managerial awareness of environmental issues, caring for a company's corporate image, and the role of sustainability strategies.

The main limitation of this study is the size of the dataset. Although it is representative of the leading energy companies, other companies, including some of the biggest companies in particular countries, deserve similar analysis. This clarifies important direction for further investigations. Methodologically, this study reveals the an importance of analysis not only of the biggest companies, but also of the fastest-growing companies. Both groups constitute the leading companies, and joint examination of their mission statements allows us to overcome the problem where industrial leadership is restricted to only the corporation size. It is likely that further investigations need to diversify the spectrum of leading companies. It should be underlined that the basic approach of the present study is the content analysis of the selected mission statements, i.e., finding the evidence of 'greening' in them. In-depth statistical analyses are left for the following studies, which will require more information on companies and, probably, knowledge of how mission statements changed over time.

**Supplementary Materials:** The following are available online at https://www.mdpi.com/2071-105 0/13/4/2192/s1, Supplement S1.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, D.A.R. and N.N.Y.; methodology, D.A.R. and N.N.Y.; investigation, D.A.R. and V.A.E.; writing—original draft preparation, D.A.R.; writing—review and editing, D.A.R. and V.A.E. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Funding:** This research received no external funding.

**Institutional Review Board Statement:** Not applicable.

**Informed Consent Statement:** Not applicable.

**Data Availability Statement:** Not applicable.

**Acknowledgments:** The authors gratefully thank G. Tsantopoulos (Greece) and E. Karasmanaki (Greece) for their editorial support, the four reviewers for their thorough consideration of this paper and important recommendations, and I. Rodella (Italy) for her helpful suggestions for the preliminary version of this work.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest. All companies are discussed fully anonymously in the present study to avoid occasional violation of their reputations.

#### **References**