Colen, S en; Mohnen, Alwine
A icle — Published Ve sion
Unpacking he Renewable Pull E ec : Condi ions o G een
Indus ial Reloca ion
Business S a egy and he En i onmen
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John Wiley & Sons
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Colen, S en; Mohnen, Alwine (2025) : Unpacking he Renewable Pull E ec :
Condi ions o G een Indus ial Reloca ion, Business S a egy and he En i onmen , ISSN
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7767
Business S a egy and he En i onmen
RESEARCH ARTICLE OPEN ACCESS
Unpacking he Renewable Pull E ec : Condi ions o G een
Indus ial Reloca ion
S enColen | AlwineMohnen
School o Managemen , Technical Uni e si y Munich, Munich,Ge many
Co espondence: S en Colen (s en.colen@ um.de)
Recei ed: 13 No embe 2024 | Re ised: 19 Ma ch 2025 | Accep ed: 7 Ap il 2025
Keywo ds: analy ical hie a chy p ocess| di ec - educed i on| ene gy- in ensi e indus ies| g een ammonia| g een eloca ion| indus ial eloca ion|
enewable pull e ec | sus ainable ansi ion
ABSTRACT
The enewable pull e ec heo e ically leads o he eloca ion o g een p oduc ion acili ies wi hin ene gy- in ensi e indus ies o
egions ich in enewable ene gy esou ces. This s udy employs a quali a i e esea ch design, in eg a ing he analy ic hie a chy
p ocess me hod, by in e iewing op manage s and expe s om globally leading s eel and chemical co po a ions, p edomi-
nan ly based in Eu ope and Ge many. The indings e eal ha whe eas ac o s associa ed wi h he enewable pull e ec a e
mos in luen ial in g een p oduc ion loca ion decisions, h ee c i ical condi ions mus be me o his e ec o ansla e in o
ac ual g een eloca ions: weake agglome a ion and demand pull e ec , limi ed coun e ac ing subsidies om egula o y bodies,
and ul illmen o essen ial socio- poli ical and en i onmen al p e equisi es. This s udy demons a es ha he enewable pull
e ec only condi ionally d i es g een eloca ions, p o iding he i s comp ehensi e e alua ion o he key ac o s shaping g een
eloca ions wi hin he ongoing academic deba e. Mo eo e , by p o iding empi ical insigh s om leading indus y p ac i ione s,
he s udy ad ances he exis ing li e a u e, which has been p edominan ly based on heo e ical models and echno- economic
analyses. Addi ionally, he s udy sugges s se e al o emos a enues o u u e esea ch. Finally, i deli e s p ac ical implica ions
o ene gy- in ensi e indus ies' op managemen and policymake s in bo h enewable- ene gy- ich and sca ce egions, in o ming
s a egic decision- making o sus ainable ansi ion.
1 | In oduc ion
The ansi ion o a low- ca bon economy has become a global
impe a i e, wi h he indus ial sec o — esponsible o ap-
p oxima ely 34%1 o global g eenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
(IPCC 2023)— acing moun ing p essu e o deca bonize.
In e na ional policy amewo ks such as he Pa is Ag eemen ,
along wi h egional ini ia i es like he In la ion Reduc ion
Ac in he Uni ed S a es (The Whi e House 2023) and he
G een Deal Indus ial Plan in he Eu opean Union (Eu opean
Commission2023), a e o cing a sus ainable ansi ion by in-
do sing enewable ene gy adop ion (Kabongo2019).
Fo ene gy- in ensi e indus ies (EIIs) such as s eel and chem-
icals, his sus ainable ansi ion p esen s a complex challenge
(Ege e e al.2024). I equi es he adop ion o elec i ied p o-
duc ion p ocesses and he subs i u ion o ossil uels wi h low-
o ze o- GHG ene gy ca ie s, including g een hyd ogen (GH2;
Eicke and De Blasio2022; He mundsdo i e al.2024; Rissman
e al. 2020). Howe e , he inc easing demand o enewable
elec ici y and GH2—pa icula ly in highly indus ialized coun-
ies—combined wi h limi ed local enewable ene gy esou ces
(RER) and high anspo a ion cos s o enewable ene gy and
GH2, subs an ially aises p oduc ion cos s (Day2022). These dy-
namics may c ea e cos disad an ages o egions like Eu ope,
No h- Eas Asia, and pa s o he Uni ed S a es (Neuwi h
e al.2022). Consequen ly, Samadi e al.(2023) in oduce he
“ enewable pull e ec ” concep , p oposing ha coun ies wi h
abundan RER could become a ac i e o he eloca ion o
g een p oduc ion2 acili ies o EIIs om RER- poo coun ies.
This is an open access a icle unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion License, which pe mi s use, dis ibu ion and ep oduc ion in any medium,
p o ided he o iginal wo k is p ope ly ci ed.
© 2025 The Au ho (s). Business S a egy and he En i onmen published by ERP En i onmen and John Wiley & Sons L d.
7768 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
Recen ly, he academic li e a u e deba es whe he he la gely
undispu ed cos - sa ing po en ial o he enewable pull e ec
ac ually ansla es in o he eloca ion o g een p oduc ion a-
cili ies— e med “g een eloca ion” by Ve poo e al. (2024).
Schola s a gue ha o he loca ion ac o s, such as labo ma ke
dynamics, supply chain in as uc u e and egula o y en i on-
men s, could ou weigh he ene gy cos ad an ages and de e EIIs
om eloca ing (Ege e e al.2024; Samadi e al.2023; Ve poo
e al.2024). Acco dingly, almos all s udies ela ed o he enew-
able pull e ec call o u he esea ch, as “a be e unde s and-
ing o he u u e ele ance o he enewables pull e ec equi es
i s and o emos an analysis o he impo ance o ene gy cos s
in compa ison o o he loca ion ac o s” (Samadi e al.2023, 10).
This s udy, he e o e, aims o iden i y and empi ically e alua e
hese o he loca ion ac o s by add essing he ollowing esea ch
ques ion: Does he enewable pull e ec lead o g een eloca ion
o ene gy- in ensi e indus ies?
Gi en he p ospec i e and dynamic na u e o g een p oduc ion
loca ion decisions, his s udy employs an explo a i e esea ch
app oach by conduc ing 41 semi- s uc u ed in e iews wi h
op manage s and expe s wi h di ec in luence on g een p o-
duc ion loca ion decisions o global leading s eel and chemical
co po a ions, headqua e ed p ima ily in Eu ope and mos ly in
Ge many. The s udy concen a es on di ec - educed i on (DRI)
and g een ammonia, as bo h p oduc s a e highly likely o be a -
ec ed by he enewable pull e ec (Samadi e al.2023). The ana-
ly ical hie a chy p ocess (AHP), a well- es ablished me hodology
o mul iple- c i e ia decision analysis (Saa y1987), is applied o
assess he ela i e impo ance o loca ion ac o s, de i ed om
li e a u e. Addi ionally, hema ic analysis based on B aun and
Cla ke(2006) and May ing's(2016) quali a i e con en analy-
sis is applied o in e p e he in e iew s a emen s unde which
ci cums ances he enewable pull e ec could lead o g een
eloca ion.
This s udy o e s h ee cen al con ibu ions o he ongoing
academic discou se. Fi s ly, i iden i ies and ca ego izes addi-
ional loca ion ac o s ha in luence g een eloca ion decisions
beyond enewable ene gy access and cos sa ings. Al hough
p e ious esea ch p ima ily p esen sel - concep ualized ac-
o s (Ve poo e al.2024), his s udy b idges he gap by de-
i ing ele an ac o s h ough exis ing loca ion decision
li e a u e, o e ing a b oade and mo e g ounded pe spec i e.
Secondly, by le e aging he AHP, he s udy no only iden i-
ies bu also e alua es he impo ance o all ac o s, p o iding
a s uc u ed assessmen o he ela i e impo ance o he e-
newable pull e ec compa ed o o he loca ion de e minan s.
This add esses a c ucial missing elemen in he ongoing de-
ba e, enhancing he unde s anding o he dynamics ha d i e
o hinde g een eloca ion (Samadi e al.2023). Thi dly, he
empi ical app oach aken by his s udy adds conside able
alue. Unlike p io esea ch ha p edominan ly elies on
heo e ical models and echno- economic analyses (Ege e
e al.2024; Samadi e al.2023; Ve poo e al.2024), his s udy
is he i s o empi ically in es iga e he enewable pull e ec .
Fu he mo e, he a e oppo uni y o inco po a e he pe spec-
i es o decision- make s a he highes co po a e le els, adds a
c ucial laye o expe ise o he deba e. The empi ical insigh s
con ibu e o e ining and subs an ia ing exis ing s udies wi h
a mo e angible basis o decision- making.
Beyond i s heo e ical con ibu ions, he s udy deli e s p ac i-
cal insigh s o bo h co po a e leade s and policymake s. The
indings equip EII decision- make s wi h a amewo k o e alu-
a e p oduc ion loca ions by balancing ene gy cos s wi h s a e-
gic conce ns. Fo policymake s in RER- poo egions, he s udy
p o ides insigh s o assess hei a ac i eness o EIIs and sug-
ges s s a egies o mi iga e he isk o emig a ion. Con e sely,
egula o s in RER- ich egions can use he ou comes o a ac
g een in es men s om EIIs and capi alize on hei compe i i e
ad an age.
The emainde o he pape is s uc u ed as ollows: Sec ion2
e iews he loca ion decision heo y including he enewable
pull e ec and iden i ies loca ion decision ac o s o g een
p oduc ion o EIIs. Sec ion3 desc ibes he applied quali a i e
me hodology. Sec ion4 p esen s he s udy's esul s. Sec ion5
answe s he esea ch ques ion and discusses heo e ical con i-
bu ions, p ac ical implica ions, limi a ions, and u u e esea ch
demands. Sec ion6 concludes.
2 | Li e a u e Re iew: Loca ion Decision Fac o s
o G een P oduc ion Facili ies o EIIs
The decision o p oduc ion acili y loca ion has long been a ocal
opic in academic esea ch (Tsai and U me ze 2024), e ol ing
subs an ially alongside shi s in economic pa adigms and, mo e
ecen ly, he g owing emphasis on g een p oduc ion p ac ices
(Day2022). This sec ion syn hesizes he cu en s a e o aca-
demic li e a u e on loca ion decision ac o s, acing hei e o-
lu ion and highligh ing how adi ional ac o s a e inc easingly
in eg a ed wi h en i onmen al conside a ions. Finally, we es-
ablish a comp ehensi e se o loca ion ac o s pe inen o he
g een p oduc ion decisions o EIIs.
2.1 | The E olu ion o Loca ion Decision Fac o s
Towa ds Sus ainable Decision- Making
Theo e ical ounda ions o indus ial loca ion decisions da e
back o ea ly models by on Thünen(1826) and Alonso(1964),
which p io i ize land en and anspo a ion cos s in ag icul-
u al and indus ial con ex s. La e , Webe (1909) in oduces
a model balancing anspo a ion, labo , and agglome a ion
e ec s (Mu ay e al.2020). These adi ional ac o s a e u -
he de eloped in K ugman's(1991) New Economic Geog aphy,
which posi s ha i ms selec loca ions based on labo cos s,
ma ke size, anspo a ion expenses, and agglome a ion econ-
omies. His o ically, high anspo a ion cos s led indus ies
o clus e a ound na u al loca ional ad an ages, such as wa-
e ways, po s, and esou ce- ich a eas (Day2022). Howe e ,
ad ancemen s in logis ics and echnology ha e diminished
anspo a ion cos s, con ibu ing o he “dea h o dis ance”
pe cep ion by Glaese and Kohlhase (2004). This shi has
enabled p oduc ion o eloca e om esou ce- dependen e-
gions o a eas o e ing bene i s like low labo cos s o s ong
agglome a ion ad an ages, ul ima ely acili a ing he c ea ion
o global alue chains (Mudambi2018).
The “pollu ion ha en hypo hesis” (Le inson and Taylo 2008)
highligh s how i ms in global alue chains o en p io i ize
7769
cos - e ec i e loca ions, howe e , equen ly a he expense
o en i onmen al conside a ions. La e esea ch by Pe ez-
Beni ez e al.(2021) indica e ha al hough adi ional ac o s,
including agglome a ion and labo cos s, emain in luen ial,
eme ging c i e ia such as echnology access, poli ical s abil-
i y, gende equali y, clima e condi ions, and enewable ene gy
supply a e inc easingly ele an . Ne e heless, en i onmen al
conside a ions a e s ill iewed as seconda y, signaling a need
o deepe in eg a ion o sus ainabili y in loca ion decision
models.
Howe e , g owing egula o y p essu es d i e indus ies o-
wa ds sus ainable p ac ices, necessi a ing a b oade in e p e a-
ion o indus ial loca ion heo y o inco po a e en i onmen al
impe a i es (González- Beni o and González- Beni o 2010). As
adi ional models become less adequa e o explaining g een
p oduc ion loca ion decisions, he s akeholde app oach is gain-
ing ac ion, ad oca ing o mo e inclusi e decision- making
p ocesses. Renn e al. (1997) emphasize he impo ance o
discu si e p ocesses among di e se s akeholde s, whe eas
Bja ma z and Bocken (2024) and Ma con No a e al. (2023)
a gue o s akeholde and ac o - ne wo k heo ies o be e cap-
u e he dynamics o sus ainabili y ansi ions in he ene gy
sec o . Fu he mo e, he concep o indus ial symbiosis also
gains p ominence as an ex ension o agglome a ion bene i s
o g een p oduc ion. S udies by Pa o(2000), Doménech and
Da ies(2011), and Des oche s(2001) highligh he ad an ages
o collabo a i e amewo ks whe e companies exchange ma e-
ials, ene gy, and knowledge. Vahidzadeh e al.(2021) u he
unde sco e he need o scale up such p ac ices o maximize e-
gional en i onmen al bene i s.
Fu u e loca ion decisions should place g ea e emphasis on
sus ainable decision- making pe spec i es (Zagona i 2024).
The e o e, in addi ion o adi ional loca ion ac o s, a
b oade ange o conside a ions should be inco po a ed in o
he decision- making p ocess o g een p oduc ion loca ion
decisions.
2.2 | Renewable Pull E ec E ol ing as Loca ion
Fac o o G een P oduc ion Facili ies o EIIs
Fo g een p oduc ion loca ion decisions, anspo a ion cos s
o enewable ene gy a e e- eme ging as a c i ical ac o (Day
2022). His o ically, declining anspo a ion cos s o ossil
uels educed indus ies' dependence on p oximi y o na u al
esou ces. Howe e , his end may no hold o enewable en-
e gy sou ces. Saadi e al.(2018) demons a e ha elec ici y
ansmission cos s can be up o 19 imes highe and hyd o-
gen anspo a ion cos s up o 17 imes highe han hose o
ossil uel pipelines. Day(2022) posi s ha , gi en he signi i-
can ly highe anspo a ion cos s associa ed wi h enewable
ene gy—pa icula ly elec ici y and hyd ogen—compa ed o
ossil uels, ene gy cos s will gain subs an ial impo ance in
u u e indus ial loca ion decisions. This disc epancy c ea es
a compe i i e ad an age o egions ich in RER. A enewable
pull e ec ep esen ed by highly ele an enewable ene gy
access and cos ac o s may occu . Coun ies abundan in RER
may a ac EIIs o es ablish new o eloca e exis ing g een
p oduc ion acili ies. Unlike ca bon leakage, which is o en
d i en by he desi e o e ade s ingen clima e egula ions,
such g een eloca ions a e keeping en i onmen al p oduc-
ion s anda ds by seeking o enhance cos - e iciency (Samadi
e al.2023).
Howe e , he likelihood o he enewable pull e ec leading o
g een eloca ions a ies ac oss indus ies. Samadi e al.(2023)
iden i y speci ic cha ac e is ics ha ende ce ain indus ies,
no ably s eel wi h DRI and chemis y wi h g een ammonia,
mo e suscep ible o his e ec (A mijo and Philibe 2020;
Fasihi e al. 2021; Gielen e al. 2020). T adi ional p ima y
c ude s eel p oduc ion in ol es p ocessing i on o e in blas
u naces using coal coke, ollowed by e inemen in an oxygen
con e e . T ansi ioning o g een s eel p oduc ion equi es ex-
ensi e in es men s in new acili ies, eplacing blas u naces
wi h di ec educ ion p ocesses powe ed by GH2 (Samadi e al.
2023).Simila ly, whe eas he Habe –Bosch p ocess o ammo-
nia syn hesis emains cons an , g een ammonia p oduc ion
di e ges p ima ily in he hyd ogen p oduc ion me hod (Ege e
e al. 2024). Exis ing ammonia plan s, op imized o s eam
me hane e o ming, mus be econ igu ed o u ilize GH2 as a
eeds ock, necessi a ing a edesign o in eg a e ex e nal s eam
and ni ogen supplies. Samadi e al.(2023) sugges ha o bo h
DRI and g een ammonia, exis ing con en ional acili ies o e
limi ed u ili y o g een p oduc ion ansi ions. By 2035, ene gy
cos s—including anspo a ion—could cons i u e up o 50% o
o al p oduc ion cos s o DRI and as much as 90% o g een am-
monia. The e o e, men ioned cha ac e is ics o DRI and g een
ammonia p oduc ion con ibu e o an inc eased likelihood o
he enewable pull e ec .
Mo eo e , Ege e e al.(2024) calcula e po en ial cos sa ings
o a eloca ion o g een s eel and chemicals. The p oduc ion
o h ee ene gy- in ensi e p oduc s loca ed in a ela i ely RER-
poo coun y, in his case in Ge many, a e indi idually jux-
aposed in h ee scena ios: The eloca ion o a RER- excellen
si e o he en i e p oduc ion, only p ima y p oduc ion includ-
ing GH2 p oduc ion o only he GH2 p oduc ion. The maximal
cos sa ings a e in s eel 19%, in u ea 30%, and in e hylene 25%
by eloca ing he en i e p oduc ion o a RER- excellen si e.
Ve poo e al.(2024) pu sue a simila app oach and calcula e
po en ial cos sa ings o 18% in s eel, 32% in u ea, and 38% in
e hylene.
Thus, he enewable pull e ec po en ially subs an ially in lu-
ences he loca ion decisions o EIIs, pa icula ly wi hin g een
s eel and chemicals p oduc ion sec o s. Howe e , he aca-
demic discou se con inues o deba e whe he he cos - sa ing
po en ial o he enewable pull e ec opposing o he ac o s
will mani es in ac ual eloca ions o g een p oduc ion acil-
i ies (Ege e e al.2024; Samadi e al.2023). The enewable
pull e ec is a ela i ely no el concep wi h limi ed explo-
a ion and exis ing esea ch p edominan ly ocuses on such
ou laid echno- economic analyses and in es iga ions in o his
deba e emain spa se. Only Ve poo e al.(2024) p opose a
b oade concep ual amewo k o g een eloca ions by in o-
ducing so ac o s, ca ego ized by pe spec i es om p i a e
in es o s, policymake s, and socie y. Howe e , as hese ac-
o s a e concep ual and no de i ed empi ically o om he
li e a u e, i emains unce ain whe he hey encompass all
ele an aspec s. Ne e heless, hey o m a alid and highly
7770 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
aluable inpu o he objec i e o his s udy o de i e a com-
p ehensi e lis o pe inen ac o s in he subsequen sec ion.
Mo eo e , a deepe in es iga ion on how hese so ac o s
impac a g een eloca ion decision is no pu sued. The e o e,
only e y limi ed exis ing esea ch discusses such so o o he
ac o s, despi e nea ly all esea che s in he ield acknowledg-
ing hei impo ance.
2.3 | De elopmen o Comp ehensi e Lis
o Fac o s o G een P oduc ion Loca ion Decision
o EIIs
The li e a u e decla es a wide a ay o alid ac o s po en ially
in luencing g een p oduc ion loca ion decisions o EIIs. Table1
encapsula es he ac o s including he unde lying p ima y
e e ences.3
F om a inancial pe spec i e, se e al p oduc ion cos s play a
c i ical ole, including capi al expendi u es (CAPEX) and op-
e a ional expendi u es (OPEX), which encompass labo , aw
ma e ials, ene gy, and ou bound anspo a ion cos s. No ably,
inbound anspo a ion cos s o aw ma e ials and ene gy—
pa icula ly he ising cos s o anspo ing enewable ene gy—
a e in eg a ed wi hin he b oade ca ego ies o aw ma e ial and
ene gy cos s. Gi en ha he enewable pull e ec in luences
only g een p oduc ion acili ies, his analysis conside s solely
enewable ene gy sou ces, such as g een elec ici y and GH2.
Addi ional key loca ion ac o s iden i ied in he li e a u e in-
clude ca bon cos s, ep esen ing he ex e nal cos s o GHG emis-
sions, a ailable subsidies, access o capi al ma ke s o inancing
in es men s, and he implica ions o local cus oms and gene al
axa ion policies.
The a ailabili y and accessibili y o asse s, as well as supply
and demand dynamics, a e also pe inen o loca ion decisions.
Asse s in his con ex e e o ounda ional p e equisi es, includ-
ing he acili y unde cons uc ion, he labo o ce, and c i ical
in as uc u e and logis ics. New g een acili ies can bene i
om agglome a ion economies and in eg a ed p oduc ion sys-
ems, le e aging syne gies in p oduc ion o ene gy ne wo ks,
he specialized echnical expe ise o he wo k o ce, and sha ed
suppo and main enance unc ions. F om a supply pe spec i e,
ac o s such as he geog aphical p oximi y o aw ma e ial and
ene gy supplie s, as well as he eliable and quali ied p o ision
o hese essen ial inpu s, a e subs an ial. Conside ing he cu -
en sca ci y o high olumes o g een ene gy, access o ansi-
ional b idging ene gy sou ces, such as na u al gas, becomes an
impo an conside a ion. F om a demand pe spec i e, he li e a-
u e unde sco es he impo ance o lexible deli e y capabili ies,
p oximi y o cus ome s, and he size o he local ma ke o inal
p oduc s. Howe e , i he g een p oduc ion acili y gene a es
only p ima y p oduc s ha equi e u he p ocessing in o inal
p oduc s, he loca ion decision may depend mo e on p oximi y
o subsequen o po en ial seconda y4 p oduc ion s ages wi hin
he alue chain.
Beyond inancial and alue chain conside a ions, poli ical
ac o s eme ge as c i ical in he schola ly discou se. A s a-
ble legal and poli ical en i onmen , coupled wi h a gene ally
indus y- iendly poli ical s ance, plays a pi o al ole in he
decision- making p ocess. This includes he assu ance o eli-
able p ope y igh s, anspa en gene al egula ions, and he
abili y o a coun y o suppo p oduc s wi h globally ecog-
nized quali y ce i ica ions. As egional pe cep ions and de i-
ni ions o g een p oduc ion a y—illus a ed by he ongoing
deba e su ounding nuclea ene gy— he s ic ness and imple-
men a ion o clima e ac ion egula ions and p o isions also
in luence loca ion choices. Rounding ou he compila ion o
loca ion ac o s om he li e a u e, social and en i onmen al
conside a ions weigh in o he decision p ocess. Ce ain loca-
ions may p esen pollu ion isks, en i onmen al cons ain s,
o a heigh ened po en ial o impac ing local communi ies.
Addi ionally, he quali y o li e, along wi h heal h and sa e y
s anda ds o employees, can a y ex ensi ely be ween po en-
ial loca ions.
3 | Me hodology: In e iew S udy Wi h Top
Manage s and Expe s o EIIs
To add ess he esea ch ques ion, his s udy employs an em-
pi ical quali a i e esea ch design o gain in- dep h insigh s
in o po en ial s a egic managemen decisions o EIIs. A qual-
i a i e app oach is pa icula ly sui able due o he o wa d-
looking, no el, and complex na u e o he opic, as well as
he need o a nuanced unde s anding o op manage s' and
expe s' pe cep ions, gi en ha g een eloca ion decisions
a e hea ily in luenced by s a egic isions and an icipa ed
oppo uni ies and challenges. Mo eo e , a p esen , g een e-
loca ions la gely emain hypo he ical u u e scena ios, and
only e y limi ed da a on ac ual g een eloca ions exis , e-
in o cing he app op ia eness o a quali a i e esea ch design
(Robinson2014).
The s udy's esea ch design, depic ed in Figu e 1, ollows a
h ee- s ep sequen ial app oach.
The i s s ep in ol es he de elopmen o a semi- s uc u ed in-
e iew guideline and sampling o in e iewees as p oposed by
Robinson(2014), explained in Sec ion3.1.
The second s ep consis s o conduc ing 41 in- dep h in e iews
wi h op manage s and expe s who could di ec ly in luence
g een p oduc ion loca ion decisions a leading global s eel
and chemical co po a ions, p edominan ly headqua e ed in
Eu ope and Ge many. Gi en ha loca ion decisions a e inhe -
en ly mul i- c i e ia decision p oblems, he s udy inco po a es
an AHP o assess he impo ance o enewable pull e ec ac-
o s, he eby enhancing he s udy's analy ical dep h. Th ough
AHP, he in e iewees ank ac o s ia pai wise compa isons
(Kangas and Kangas2002), yielding a weigh ed sco e o each
ac o ha e lec s i s ela i e impo ance (Yang and Lee1997).
As AHP is a highly de ailed and ime- consuming me hod—
pa icula ly when e alua ing nume ous ac o s—i s applica-
ion du ing in e iews wi h high- p o ile manage s, who ha e
na u ally limi ed a ailabili y, is cons ained. Consequen ly,
we gain he oppo uni y o conduc AHP assessmen s in 20
ou o 41 in e iews. This me hodical enhancemen o he
quali a i e s udy o almos hal he in e iews allows o an
inc eased unde s anding o he ele ance o he enewable
pull e ec ac o s, o e ing a p o ounde analysis o s a egic
7771
TABLE 1 | O e iew o he iden i ied loca ion decision ac o s o g een p oduc ion o EIIs.
S a egic conside a ion Fac o Re e ences
P oduc ion cos s CAPEX Albe o2000; G eenhu 1956;
Hoo e 1948; Ve poo e al.2024
Labo cos s Go hwal and Saha2015; Schmenne 1982;
Singh e al.2018; Webe 1909
Raw ma e ial cos s Day2022; Go hwal and Saha2015;
Schmenne 1982; Singh e al.2018
Ene gy cos s (incl. GH2)Day2022; Gielen e al.2020; Go hwal and
Saha2015; Samadi e al.2023; Thekke hil
e al.2024; Ve poo e al.2024; Zhu e al.2014
Ou bound anspo a ion cos s Beckmann1986; Samadi e al.2023;
Ve poo e al.2024; Webe 1909
Regula ion and inancing
cos s
Ca bon cos s Babike 2005; Samadi e al.2023;
Timilsina2022; Wu e al.2017
Access o subsidies A hi awong and MacCa hy2014; Ve poo e al.2024
Access o capi al ma ke (incl. WACC) Ambos e al.2021; A hi awong and
MacCa hy2014; Go hwal and Saha2015
Local axa ion Albe o2000; A hi awong and MacCa hy2014
Cus oms Albe o2000; A hi awong and MacCa hy2014
Access o asse s Access o g een p oduc ion acili y Gold1991; Go hwal and Saha2015;
Wal e s and Wheele 1984
Access o labo o ces Albe o2000; Go hwal and Saha2015;
Sha ma2004; Zhu e al.2014
Access o in as uc u e and logis ics Beckmann1986; McMillan1965; Thekke hil
e al.2024; Ve poo e al.2024
Exis ing asse s a loca ion Samadi e al.2023; Zhu e al.2014
Agglome a ion and
in eg a ion bene i s
Glaese and Kohlhase2004; Schneide 2022;
Smi h1966, 1981; Webe 1909
Access o supply P oximi y o aw ma e ial supplie s Day2022; Go hwal and Saha2015;
Schmenne 1982; Wheele and Mody1992
Reliable aw ma e ial supply Gielen e al.2020; G eenhu 1956;
McMillan1965; Ve poo e al.2024
P oximi y o ene gy
supplie (incl. GH2)
Albe o2000; Thekke hil e al.2024;
Ve poo e al.2024; Zhu e al.2014
Reliable ene gy supply (incl. GH2) Gielen e al.2020; Samadi e al.2023;
Thekke hil e al.2024; Ve poo e al.2024
Access o b idging ene gy Bessi e al.2021; Thekke hil e al.2024;
Ve dolini e al.2018
Access o demand P oximi y o nex p oduc ion s ep Thekke hil e al.2024; Ve poo e al.2024
P oximi y o seconda y
p oduc ion s eps
Go hwal and Saha2015; Samadi
e al.2023; Sha ma2004
P oximi y o cus ome s
o inal p oduc s
Go hwal and Saha2015; Mo ia y1980;
Schmenne 1982; Ve poo e al.2024
Flexible deli e y o inal p oduc s A hi awong and MacCa hy2014; Singh e al.2018
Size o local ma ke o inal p oduc s Go hwal and Saha2015; Mo ia y1980; Schmenne 1982
(Con inues)
7772 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
p io i ies wi hin EIIs' op managemen (Zambujal- Oli ei a
e al.2025).
The hi d s ep in ol es a comp ehensi e analysis o all 41 in-
e iews using quali a i e con en analysis echniques based
on B aun and Cla ke(2006) and May ing (2016), depic ed in
Sec ion3.2. This me hod acili a es a de ailed examina ion o
he da a, sys ema ically ca ego izing in o ma ion in o he-
ma ic g oups. Addi ionally, we analyze he 20 AHP assess-
men s ollowing he classical me hodology app oach p oposed
by Saa y(1987) using hese indings o en ich and alida e he
quali a i e hema ic analysis, desc ibed in Sec ion3.3.
3.1 | In e iew Sampling
This s ep includes p epa ing a guideline o he semi- s uc u ed
in e iew, as ou lined in Appendix A, and applying a ou - s ep
sampling echnique based on Robinson(2014).
Fi s ly, we de ine a sample uni e se by es ablishing c i e ia
o selec ing in e iewees, summa ized in Table2. Gi en he
highly s a egic na u e o he decisions unde in es iga ion,
which a e ypically made a he highes managemen le els,
we ocus on op managemen p o iles and ad iso s wi h di-
ec in luence on such decisions. All in e iewees ha e o e
10 yea s o expe ience in he s eel o chemical indus ies and
specialize in deca bonizing p oduc ion p ocesses. As DRI
and ammonia a e high- olume commodi ies and he enew-
able pull e ec could d i e u he in e na ionaliza ion, we
selec indi iduals om la ge and global ac i e co po a ions.
Al hough hese co po a ions ope a e wo ldwide, we p io i ize
hose embedded in a egula o y en i onmen ha emphasizes
deca boniza ion and g een p oduc ion ansi ions o ensu e
he ele ance o he enewable pull e ec . Eu ope, pa icu-
la ly Ge many, se es as an ideal ep esen a i e egion due o
i s ambi ious clima e a ge s o achie ing GHG neu ali y by
2045 (Ge man Go e nmen 2021), high indus ializa ion, and
ela i ely low RER (Day2022). Consequen ly, ou expe sam-
pling concen a es on co po a ions headqua e ed in Eu ope,
p ima ily in Ge many.
Secondly, ecognizing he limi ed a ailabili y o high- p o ile
in e iewees, we se a a ge sample size o 30 in e iews, spli
e enly be ween AHP and non- AHP, which we ul ima ely ex-
ceed. Thi dly, we adop a pu posi e and con enience sampling
S a egic conside a ion Fac o Re e ences
Poli ical en i onmen S able legal and poli ical sys em Albe o2000; A hi awong and MacCa hy2014
Indus ial iendly poli ical a i ude A hi awong and MacCa hy2014; Day2022
Low clima e ac ion egula ions Albe o2000; Babike 2005; Huang e al.2021
Reliable p oduc ion ce i ica ion Ve poo e al.2024
En i onmen al and social
isks
Pollu ion and en i onmen al
cons ain s
Coughlin e al.1990; Mo ia y1980;
Singh e al.2018; Zhu e al.2014
A ec ed communi ies' cons ain s Go hwal and Saha2015; Mo ia y1980
Quali y o li e o employees Albe o2000; Coughlin e al.1990; Go hwal
and Saha2015; Hudson1983, 1988
Occupa ional heal h and
sa e y s anda ds
Am ina and Vilsi2015; Singh e al.2018
TABLE 1 | (Con inued)
FIGURE 1 | O e iew o he s udy's esea ch design.
7773
s a egy due o he speci ic selec ion c i e ia and he sca ci y o
sui able expe s (Robinson2014). Finally, sample sou cing is p i-
ma ily conduc ed ia p o essional ne wo king pla o ms such as
LinkedIn and he au ho s' p o essional con ac s.
3.2 | Quali a i e Thema ical Analysis
As lis ed in Table3, he s udy conduc s 41 in e iews, 20 in
chemis y and 21 in s eel, om Augus 2024 o Janua y 2025, e-
sul ing in 1834 min and 542 pages o ansc ibed in e iew da a.
We employ a quali a i e hema ic analysis by B aun and
Cla ke(2006), based on May ing's(2016) quali a i e con en
analysis app oach. We pe o m wo i e a i e ounds o s uc-
u ing educ ion p ocesses o he in e iew da a o de i e
meaning ul insigh s. Ou main objec i e is o sys ema ically
iden i y and ca ego ize he key conside a ions in luencing
g een p oduc ion loca ion decisions. Ini ially, we induc i ely
code all s a emen s in o 10 ca ego ies using pa aph asing and
gene aliza ion echniques, ensu ing each code is o mula ed
in a nominal s yle o cla i y and consis ency. We hen dis ill
he 10 ca ego ies in o h ee o e a ching hemes. The hemes
ep esen he main condi ions o g een eloca ion unde he
enewable pull e ec , as posed in Table5 in Sec ion 4.
3.3 | AHP
As explained abo e, we conduc a mul iple- c i e ia decision
analysis using Saa y's(1987) AHP o boos he assessmen o he
ele ance o he enewable pull e ec by coun e ac ing on po-
en ial inaccu acies inhe en in quali a i e esea ch.
The AHP me hod is widely used o indus ial loca ion de-
cisions in pee - e iewed esea ch and is ecognized as an
e ec i e ool o mul iple- c i e ia decision analysis (Boa dman
Liu e al. 2008; Go hwal and Saha 2015; Ho and Ma 2018;
K s ić e al.2024; Russo and Camanho2015; Vogl e al.2018;
Zambujal- Oli ei a e al. 2025). I is pa icula ly sui able o
handling nume ous ac o s, in eg a ing bo h objec i e and
subjec i e judgmen s, and sys ema ically p io i izing complex
decision- making scena ios (Pa o i 1994; Saad 2001; Singh
e al.2007; Vaidya and Kuma 2006). P e ious s udies also al-
ida e he AHP o sus ainabili y- ela ed decision- making (B ogi
and Menichini2024; Dos San os e al.2019; Ocampo2019), and
Pe ei a and Bamel(2023) speci ically ecommend AHP o e-
sea ch on sus ainable manu ac u ing.
We apply he AHP5 in h ee s eps: model de elopmen , da a
assessmen , and da a syn hesis. Fi s ly, we de elop an AHP
model, se ing he s udy's objec i e and es ablishing s a egic
conside a ions (SCs) wi h associa ed loca ion ac o s, as shown
in Figu e2. We concep ualize he hie a chical decision model
by e iewing ele an li e a u e and logically g ouping ac o s
unde SCs, adhe ing o Saa y's(2001) guidelines o AHP hie a -
chy cons uc ion. Th ough a ious p e- discussions wi h indus-
y expe s, we e ine he model o include 7 SCs and 33 loca ion
ac o s, as de ailed in Sec ion2.3 and Table1. Fac o s ela ed o
enewable ene gy access o cos s, including GH2, ep esen he
enewable pull e ec .
Secondly, we conduc AHP assessmen s wi h 20 in e iewees6
(10 in chemis y and 10 in s eel), as lis ed in Table3. Du ing
he in e iews, we ask he in e iewees on how hey would
e alua e he ela i e impo ance o loca ion ac o s i hey mus
ecommend he loca ion o a new g een p oduc ion acili y,7 as
ou lined in he in e iew guide in Appendix A. The eby, using
Saa y's(1987) classical AHP scale (Table 4), pa icipan s pe -
o m pai wise compa isons o he SCs and ac o s.
Thei assessmen s gene a e pai wise compa ison ma ices, wi h
in e se ac ional alues o co esponding cells. Fo n ac o Fi,
he ma ix A wi h aij as ela i e impo ance o ac o i o e ac o
j, is as ollows:
Thi dly, he AHP da a syn hesis is conduc ed, using “AHP- OS”
so wa e (Goepel 2018). We no malize he compa ison ma ices
and calcula e he ele ance a es o each SC and ac o in he
AHP model. No malizing each elemen aij de ines a no malized
ma ix:
An app oxima ion o he eigen ec o can hen be used o cal-
cula e he weigh o each SC and ac o . We ca ego ize he el-
e ance a es in o local weigh (LW), which indica e p io i y
wi hin he p eceding hie a chical le el, and global weigh (GW),
(1)
A
=
⎡
⎢
⎢
⎢
⎢
⎢
⎢
⎢
⎣
1a12 ⋯a1n
1
a12
1…a2n
⋮ ⋮ ⋱⋮
1
a1n
1
a2n
⋯1
⎤
⎥
⎥
⎥
⎥
⎥
⎥
⎥
⎦
(2)
a
no m
ij =
a
ij
∑
n
i=1aij
TABLE 2 | O e iew o sampling selec ion c i e ia.
C i e ia Requi emen s
Decision p oximi y Wi h di ec o indi ec
(in ol ed in decision
p epa a ion) in luence on
g een eloca ion decisions
Indus ial expe ise Min. 10 yea s o wo king
expe ience in s eel o
chemical indus y
Func ional expe ise Deep knowledge abou g een
p oduc ion p ocesses o g een
s eel o g een chemicals
Rep esen ing co po a e Wo ks o globally ac i e
co po a e in s eel o
chemical indus y
Regula o y embedding Wo ks o a co po a e
embedded in a egula o y
en i onmen , which p io i izes
deca boniza ion e o s
7774 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
TABLE 3 | O e iew o he conduc ed 41 semi- s uc u ed in e iews.
#Indus y AHP Co po a ion In e iewee p o ile
Du a ion
[in min]
1Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce P esiden , Ne Ze o Accele a o 48
2Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce Head o Global Sus ainabili y 49
3Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce Di ec o , Ope a ions and Si e De elopmen 44
4Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Senio Vice P esiden , Ene gy & U ili ies 60
5Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Head o Sus ainabili y 54
6Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Head o Sus ainabili y Technologies 39
7Chemis y Yes DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce Head o Ad ocacy & Regula o y A ai s 53
8Chemis y Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o basic chemicals
53
9Chemis y Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o basic chemicals
50
10 Chemis y Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o basic chemicals
54
11 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce Di ec o , Head o Deca boniza ion 48
12 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed basic chemical p oduce Head o Global Sus ainabili y 36
13 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Senio Vice P esiden , Public
A ai s & Sus ainabili y
44
14 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Global Ca ego y Lead o Ene gy & U ili ies 54
15 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Sus ainabili y & Ci cula Economy Manage 35
16 Chemis y No Leading Indus ial Associa ion Senio Ad iso o Chemicals 40
17 Chemis y No Leading Indus ial Associa ion Senio Resea che G een Chemicals 36
18 Chemis y No DAX- lis ed special y
chemical p oduce
Vice P esiden , Ope a ions
and Si e De elopmen
54
19 Chemis y No Global leading special y
chemical p oduce
Supply Chain Manage 38
20 Chemis y No Ge man leading chemical p oduce Senio Vice P esiden , Chie P oduc O ice 51
21 S eel Yes Global leading s eel p oduce Head o Resea ch & De elopmen 52
22 S eel Yes Global leading s eel p oduce P og am Manage Deca boniza ion 60
23 S eel Yes Eu opean leading s eel p oduce Chie Technical O ice 37
24 S eel Yes Eu opean leading s eel p oduce Chie Ope a ions O ice 54
25 S eel Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o s eel & i on
58
26 S eel Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o s eel & i on
37
27 S eel Yes Global leading s a egy consul ancy Pa ne , Top managemen
ad iso o s eel & i on
41
(Con inues)
7781
in s a egic g een eloca ion decisions, ou s udy ad ances his
unde s anding by empi ically iden i ying and assessing hese
ac o s in di ec compa ison o hose ep esen ing he enewable
pull e ec —an app oach no p e iously add essed in academic
li e a u e, o he bes o ou knowledge.
Ou analysis e eals ha o he enewable pull e ec o ans-
la e in o in es men - in ensi e and hus long- e m g een elo-
ca ion decisions, h ee c i ical condi ions mus be me : weake
agglome a ion and demand pull, minimal coun e ac i e subsi-
dies om egula o s, and he ul illmen o sociopoli ical and
en i onmen al p e equisi es, as summa ized in Figu e3.
Fi s ly, his s udy iden i ies agglome a ion and demand pull
as pa icula ly s ong coun e o ces o he enewable pull e ec .
Cus ome s o EIIs inc easingly p e e close p oximi y o suppli-
e s, which s eng hens agglome a ion bene i s and minimizes
anspo a ion cos s, a i isks, and geopoli ical unce ain ies
(Ve poo e al.2024). This ou come challenges ounda ional as-
sump ions in p io enewable pull e ec esea ch, which o en
compa es RER- poo egions wi h s ong indus y and cus ome
demand o RER- ich egions wi hou conside ing addi ional
c i e ia beyond RER a ailabili y (Ege e e al.2024; Ve poo
e al.2024). Ou analysis sugges s ha egions wi h abundan
enewable esou ces migh no be iable i hey lack adequa e
agglome a ion ad an ages and demand. Mo eo e , ou indings
e eal ha he ongoing ug- o - wa be ween a o dable access
o enewable ene gy and in eg a ion wi h downs eam p oduc-
ion p ocesses nea cus ome s (local- o- local p oduc ion) a ies
subs an ially depending on he speci ic ene gy- in ensi e p od-
uc . As highligh ed in Sec ion4, e en wi hin he con ex o DRI
and g een ammonia p oduc ion, no able di e ences eme ge,
al hough he enewable pull e ec may p e ail o hese spe-
ci ic p oduc s eps. Howe e , hese p oduc s ep esen only a
po ion o he b oade alue chain in ol ed in p oducing g een
s eel o g een chemicals, as shown by Ege e e al.(2024) and
Ve poo e al.(2024). We a gue ha he p ecise con igu a ion
o a g een alue chain om a s a egic pe spec i e o ene gy-
in ensi e p oduc s emains unce ain, lea ing ambigui y abou
which alue c ea ion s eps o en i e chains o g een p oduc ion
in EIIs a e likely o eloca e. The e o e, u u e esea ch model-
ing po en ial geog aphical sepa a ions wi hin alue chains o
indi idual ene gy- in ensi e p oduc s, d i en by he enewable
pull e ec , could lead o no el insigh s.
Secondly, he s udy highligh s he s ong in luence o egu-
la o y subsidies on loca ion decisions, wi h he po en ial o
hinde g een eloca ions. Cu en ly, CAPEX subsidies play a de-
cisi e ole, such as in keeping DRI p oduc ion wi hin Ge many.
To p omo e g een eloca ions, subsidies should align wi h a he
han coun e ac he enewable pull e ec , po en ially being o -
e ed by egula o s in RER- ich coun ies. The cu en global
subsidy ace o a ac g een EII p oduc ion acili ies u he
emphasizes his need. This s udy demons a es he high isk o
egula o s in RER- poo egions, pa icula ly in coun ies wi h
la ge indus ial sec o s like Eu ope and No heas Asia, un-
de sco ing he c i ical impo ance o s a egic subsidy policies.
Addi ionally, ou esea ch iden i ies p ac ical pa hways o eg-
ula o s o in luence EII loca ion decisions. OPEX incen i es may
hold he g ea es way, wi h policies like “Ca bon Con ac s o
Di e ence” (applied in he Uni ed Kingdom, Ne he lands, and
po en ially in Ge many) showing p omise. Such policies equal-
ize cos dispa i ies be ween ca bon cos s and g een p oduc ion
expenses, including OPEX (BWK2024). Fu u e esea ch should
explo e e ec i e policy incen i es om bo h RER- ich and RER-
poo egula o s, helping policymake s design amewo ks and
s a egies o e ain o a ac g een EII acili ies and assess he
b oade mac oeconomic implica ions o hese measu es.
Thi dly, ou analysis indica es ha decision p e equisi es mus
be me o g een eloca ions o occu . On he one hand, RER- ich
loca ions mus sa is y minimum poli ical, legal, en i onmen al,
and social s anda ds. Many po en ial hos coun ies could be
excluded i hey ail o mee hese p e equisi es. This is pa ic-
ula ly conce ning as egions wi h high RER po en ial o en be-
long o he economically weake coun ies in he Global Sou h
(Be ge 2023). The enewable pull e ec no only o e s a pa h-
way o cos - e ec i e g een p oduc ion o EIIs bu also p esen s
socioeconomic g ow h oppo uni ies o de eloping coun ies,
pa icula ly in A ica and Sou h Ame ica (Day2022). Howe e ,
esea che s ha e al eady aised conce ns o e majo in es -
men s in g een ene gy p ojec s in de eloping coun ies, whe e
he p ima y goal is o expo gene a ed ene gy o de eloped na-
ions (Achuo e al.2023; Agyekum2024). This app oach isks
epea ing he esou ce- cu se pa e n seen wi h oil, coal, and na -
u al gas, whe e limi ed weal h gene a ion emains in he local
economy. UNIDO e al. (2024) ad oca e o de eloping coun-
ies o p io i ize domes ic g een ene gy applica ions, he eby
os e ing local business de elopmen . Fu u e esea ch should
explo e policy models ha enable de eloping coun ies o le e -
age g een eloca ions o socioeconomic g ow h while a oiding
he pi alls o a esou ce cu se, including examining how hese
na ions can mee he decision p e equisi es. On he o he hand,
ou s udy unde sco es he need o anspa ency ega ding how
con lic ing clima e egula ions and ins umen s om majo in-
dus ialized na ions will a ec global ade dynamics. The cu -
en lack o clima e policy cla i y c ea es unce ain y ha can
delay g een p oduc ion acili y loca ion decisions, pa icula ly
o EIIs wi h la ge p oduc ion olumes. The eal- wo ld impac
o his pe cei ed lack o clima e policy cla i y could be explo ed
h ough quan i a i e s udies, examining whe he i con ib-
u es o he pos ponemen o in es men s in g een p oduc ion
acili ies wi hin EIIs. Thus, he s udy's indings emphasize he
impo ance o ul illing decision p e equisi es o coun ies o
capi alize on hei RER abundance. They also echo he call om
EII op managemen o majo egula o s o es ablish long- e m
FIGURE 3 | Theo e ical model illus a ing how he enewable pull e ec leads o g een eloca ion o ene gy- in ensi e p oduc ion.
7782 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
clima e policy cla i y, add essing he egula o y ambigui y ha
cu en ly hampe s s a egic decision- making.
The indings o his s udy a e subjec o ce ain limi a ions. The
esea ch ocuses on highly complex, s a egic, sensi i e, and
no el op- managemen decisions wi hin leading co po a ions.
This inhe en ly cons ains da a a ailabili y bu simul aneously
jus i ies he chosen explo a o y me hodology, in ol ing in-
dep h in e iews wi h op manage s and expe s. Da a collec-
ion h ough semi- s uc u ed in e iews is suscep ible o sample
bias and po en ial inaccu acies in in e iewee esponses. These
limi a ions we e mi iga ed h ough wo key measu es. Fi s ly,
he s udy employed a well- es ablished sampling echnique
by Robinson (2014), widely used in pee - e iewed esea ch.
Secondly, he applica ion o he AHP me hod p o ides p ecise
nume ical judgmen s, complemen ing quali a i e insigh s and
enhancing he obus ness o he s udy. Despi e hese measu es,
a deg ee o subjec i i y wi hin he in e iew esponses emains
(Bi kin e al.2009).
Ne e heless, add essing he limi a ions o he explo a o y e-
sea ch design opens u he a enues o esea ch. The p oposed
loca ion decision model and he AHP esul s could se e as a
ounda ion o de eloping hypo heses o quan i a i e esea ch
alida ion. Addi ionally, new oppo uni ies o u he explo -
a o y quali a i e esea ch eme ge, including, bu no limi ed
o, i s ly, an a ac i eness analysis o di e en coun ies o
egion ypes o po en ial g een eloca ion s a egies, possibly
conside ing he speci ic alue chain s eps likely o be eloca ed,
and secondly, an empi ical in es iga ion in o whe he g een
eloca ions a e al eady occu ing in p ac ice, as sugges ed by
Samadi e al.(2023). Al hough comp ehensi e quan i a i e da a
migh s ill be sca ce, eal- wo ld e idence—such as company
announcemen s, epo s, and news a icles—could help illus-
a e ongoing g een eloca ions and po en ially shed ligh on
he published a ionales behind such decisions. Las ly, an e al-
ua ion o how in e na ionaliza ion s a egies, pa icula ly g een
eloca ions, could accele a e he achie emen o deca boniza-
ion a ge s in EIIs.
Table7 summa izes all iden i ied u u e esea ch di ec ions.
In gene al, his s udy aims o s imula e in e es in g een elo-
ca ions and encou age u he in es iga ion in o hei po en-
ial impac s.
6 | Conclusion
The s udy sheds ligh on he complex dynamics o g een elo-
ca ion decisions wi hin EIIs amids he global push o sus ain-
abili y. The enewable pull e ec , d i en by low g een ene gy
cos s in egions wi h high RER, eme ges as a subs an ial ac o
in luencing loca ion decisions o g een p oduc ion acili ies,
pa icula ly o DRI and g een ammonia (Ege e e al. 2024;
Samadi e al.2023; Ve poo e al.2024). Howe e , his e ec
is no absolu e and is mode a ed by h ee c i ical condi ions.
Fi s ly, he in e play be ween he enewable pull e ec and
coun e ac ing agglome a ion and demand o ces a ies depend-
ing on he speci ic ene gy- in ensi e p oduc and i s posi ion in
he alue chain. Secondly, egula o y subsidies, pa icula ly
CAPEX subsidies, play a pi o al ole in shaping loca ion deci-
sions, wi h a g owing emphasis on OPEX incen i es as a po-
en ial decisi e in luence in he global subsidy ace. Thi dly,
ul illing poli ical, legal, en i onmen al, and social p e equi-
si es is essen ial o RER- ich egions o a ac g een eloca-
ions, wi h he cu en lack o clima e policy cla i y posing a
ba ie o imely decision- making.
The s udy con ibu es o an ongoing deba e by mo ing beyond
heo e ical models and echno- economic analyses o p o ide
comp ehensi e insigh s in o he ac o s ha d i e o hinde
g een eloca ions in EIIs. By iden i ying and empi ically e al-
ua ing loca ion ac o s beyond cheap enewable ene gy access,
employing bo h hema ic analysis (B aun and Cla ke2006) and
TABLE 7 | Summa y o de i ed u u e esea ch po en ial.
Po en ial u u e esea ch a enues Desc ip ion
G een alue chain con igu a ions In es iga e how agglome a ion bene i s and demand o ces in luence he
applicabili y o he enewable pull e ec by model po en ial geog aphical
sepa a ions wi hin alue chains o di e en ene gy- in ensi e p oduc s
Regula o y subsidy s a egies Explo e e ec i e policy incen i es om RER- ich and RER-
poo egula o s o a ac o e ain g een EII acili ies
Policy models o de eloping coun ies De elop amewo ks o a ac g een eloca ions o le e age
socioeconomic g ow h by a oiding he esou ce- cu se pa e n
Impac o lacking clima e policy cla i y Quan i y how he po en ial absence o a clima e policy cla i y
a ec s in es men decisions o g een p oduc ion acili ies
Coun y a ac i eness analysis Analyze he a ac i eness o di e en coun ies o egions o g een
eloca ion s a egies depending on eloca ed alue chain s eps
Empi ical e idence o g een eloca ions Examine eal- wo ld e idence, such as company announcemen s
and epo s, o de e mine i g een eloca ions a e al eady
occu ing and unde s and he unde lying easons
Deca boniza ion s a egy e alua ion Assess how g een eloca ion s a egies con ibu e o
achie ing deca boniza ion a ge s wi hin EIIs
7783
he AHP me hod (Saa y1987), he s udy p o ides a s uc u ed
assessmen o hese ac o s' ela i e impo ance in he academic
li e a u e o he i s ime. The empi ical app oach, le e aging
insigh s om op managemen o leading s eel and chemical
co po a ions, o e s a angible pe spec i e. The indings no
only enhance he heo e ical discou se bu also p o ide p ac i-
cal guidance o co po a e leade s e alua ing g een p oduc ion
si es and o policymake s aiming o e ain o a ac g een EII
acili ies.
Fu u e esea ch should con inue explo ing how agglome a ion
bene i s and demand o ces a ec g een eloca ions, analyze
e ec i e egula o y subsidy s a egies, and de elop policy mod-
els ha enable de eloping coun ies o a ac g een eloca ions
while p omo ing socioeconomic g ow h. Addi ionally, quan i-
a i e s udies could assess how clima e policy cla i y impac s
in es men decisions and e alua e how g een eloca ions con-
ibu e o achie ing deca boniza ion a ge s in EIIs. Empi ical
esea ch is also needed o iden i y whe he g een eloca ions a e
al eady aking place.
O e all, his s udy ad ances bo h heo e ical unde s anding and
p ac ical applica ion i he enewable pull e ec leads o g een
eloca ion, con ibu ing o he b oade objec i e o sus ainable
indus ial ansi ion.
Nomencla u e
AHP analy ical hie a chy p ocess
CAPEX capi al expendi u es
CR consis ency a io
DRI di ec - educed i on
EIIs ene gy- in ensi e indus ies
GH2 g een hyd ogen
GHG g eenhouse gas
GW global weigh
LW local weigh
OPEX ope a ional expendi u es
RER enewable ene gy esou ces
SCs s a egic conside a ions
Au ho Con ibu ions
S en Colen: w i ing – o iginal d a , alida ion, me hodology, da a cu a-
ion, concep ualiza ion. Alwine Mohnen: w i ing – e iew and edi ing,
alida ion, supe ision, concep ualiza ion.
Acknowledgemen s
The au ho s g a e ully acknowledge he con ibu ions o se e al indi-
iduals o his s udy. We hank Lucas Bö che o his suppo wi h he
hema ic con en analysis and D . Ul Na loch o his in aluable men o -
ship and guidance h oughou he esea ch p ocess. We also app ecia e
he insigh ul eedback om pa icipan s a he Doc o al Conso ium
o he 2024 Au umn Con e ence o he Sus ainabili y Managemen
Sec ion o he Ge man Associa ion o Business Resea ch, as well as he
2024 In e na ional Con e ence on Sus ainable De elopmen . Finally,
we acknowledge he suppo o esea ch colleagues om he Technical
Uni e si y o Munich and he Uni e si y o Cali o nia, Be keley, bo h
o hei aluable inpu and o assis ing in e ining he pape 's language.
A i icial in elligence ools we e used exclusi ely o enhance eadabili y.
Open Access unding enabled and o ganized by P ojek DEAL.
Con lic s o In e es
The au ho s decla e no con lic s o in e es .
Da a A ailabili y S a emen
Da a will be made a ailable on eques .
Endno es
1 Including indi ec emissions om powe and hea gene a ion.
2 In his s udy, g een p oduc ion is de ined as a p oduc ion which mini-
malizes he elease o GHG emissions.
3 Due o cla i y and eadabili y easons, he e e ences o indi idual ac-
o s a e only ga he ed in Table1 and a e no epea ed in he ex .
4 Seconda y p oduc ion e e s o he u he p ocessing o any
by- p oduc s.
5 Beside he classical AHP, a uzzy logic e sion has been applied
equen ly in li e a u e. Van Laa ho en and Ped ycz (1983) and
Buckley (1985) o iginally de eloped he modi ied e sion o AHP,
which uses uzzy iangula unc ions in he pai wise compa ison p o-
cess o educe imp ecisions. Howe e , Chan e al.(2019) demons a e
ha he applica ion o uzzy AHP could be edundan and e en coun-
e p oduc i e i he examined p oblem becomes complex. In his case,
classical AHPs, in ol ing many ac o s, a e he eby al eady uzzy.
Thus, since his s udy in es iga es a highly complex decision wi h 33
ac o s, he classical AHP is applied.
6 The s udy emains in op imal sample size o apply an AHP e ec-
i ely, as sugges ed by Mu alidha an e al. (2001) and Talib and
Rahman(2015).
7 G een ammonia p oduc ion acili y o chemis y expe s and DRI p o-
duc ion acili y o s eel expe s.
8 The Random Index is de i ed by app oxima ing alues o ma ices
o o de 1 o 10, based on a sample size o 500. Acco ding o Saa y, he
Random Index alues o ma ix sizes 2 h ough 10 a e 0.00, 0.58, 0.90,
1.12, 1.24, 1.32, 1.41, 1.45, and 1.49, espec i ely (Fageha and Aibinu
2016).
9 This app oach by he expe s is also me hodologically in ended and es-
sen ial. O he wise, such condi ioning ac o s would ha e o e uled all
o he ac o s and would ha e made he AHP analyses wo hless. Fu he ,
a high AHP g oup consensus a ing o 82% o he pai wise SC ele ance
judgmen s p oo s ha all he expe s de ined he solu ion space simila ly.
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Appendix
In e iew Guideline D a o Semi- S uc u ed In e iew Wi h
an Expe
0. In oduc ion
0.0 Small alk
• Es ablish appo wi h he in e iewee and b ie ly discuss cu en
e en s o mu ual p o essional in e es s.
0.1 In e iewe in oduc ion
• Sel - in oduc ion, including esea ch backg ound.
• Con ex : Analyzing g een p oduc ion in he s eel and chemis y
indus y, wi h a ocus on loca ion selec ion. This in e iew speci i-
cally explo es DRI o g een ammonia p oduc ion.
0.2 Decla a ion o consen
• Assu ance o anonymi y: All collec ed da a will be anonymized, and
you name will no be disclosed.
• Reco ding consen : To ensu e accu acy, I would like o eco d his
in e iew. Is his accep able o you?
• Time e iciency: Due o ime cons ain s, b ie and p ecise answe s
would be app ecia ed.
0.3 Agenda o e iew
1. In oduc o y ques ions
2. Analy ical hie a chy p ocess (AHP) exe cise on loca ion decision
ac o s (i possible, o he wise skipped)
3. Deep di e ques ions on g een eloca ion condi ions
0.4 In e iewee in oduc ion
• Wha is you cu en posi ion in he company?
1. Explo a i e ques ions (gene al ques ions)
1.0 G een p oduc ion (wa m- up)
• How ad anced is you company in ansi ioning o g een
p oduc ion?
• In you opinion, wha a e he bigges hu dles in swi ching o g een
p oduc ion?
1.1 Decision ac o s o si e selec ion
• Wha a e he mos impo an ac o s when selec ing a loca ion o a
g een p oduc ion acili y?
• (Op ional) Do you di e en ia e be ween loca ion selec ion o g een
e sus non- g een p oduc ion acili ies?
2. Analy ical hie a chy p ocess ma ix (unbiased exe cise)
2.1 F aming and exe cise
• In he nex 30 min, we will conduc a s uc u ed exe cise.
○ Imagine his scena io: You a e ad ising on he loca ion de-
cision o a new g een DRI o g een ammonia p oduc ion
acili y.
○ In he i s s ep, you will assess he mos ele an ac o s in lu-
encing loca ion selec ion.
○ You eam has ca ego ized ele an ac o s, and we will com-
pa e hem in pai s o de e mine p io i y.
○ I will sha e my sc een, and we will go h ough he ac o s
sys ema ically.
• Guidance: Decision- making can be challenging, and in ui i e
esponses a e welcome. The e a e no absolu e igh o w ong
answe s.
• This exe cise abs ac s eal- wo ld complexi ies and aims o
iden i y undamen al decision d i e s.
2.2 Follow- up ques ions (biased ques ions)
• I s ong a ings (7+) we e gi en: Why is ac o X so ele an o you?
3. Deep di e ques ions on g een eloca ion condi ions (biased
ques ions)
• Some esea che s sugges a “ enewable pull e ec ,” shi ing p o-
duc ion si es o egions wi h enewable ene gy su pluses. Do you
see his end impac ing you company?
○ Wha could enable he enewable pull e ec ?
○ Wha a e he bigges challenges?
○ Wha could hinde eloca ions based on he enewable pull
e ec ?
○ Wha do you hink abou Eu ope's posi ion in his shi ?
• Could you company expand i s g een p oduc ion o new in e na-
ional loca ions?
○ Could de eloping coun ies become a ac i e loca ions?
• How do you see in e na ionaliza ion a ec ing he g een ans-
o ma ion o you indus y? Will i s eng hen o weaken he
ansi ion?
4. In e iew closing
• Is he e any hing else you would like o add ega ding g een
p oduc ion?
• Thank you o you insigh s— his was ex emely aluable. I will
sha e he esul s in au umn 2024.
7788 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
Appendix
Syn hesized AHP Resul s o Each SC and Loca ion Fac o , Including All Expe s' Judgmen s (n = 20)
S a egic
conside a ions
Local
weigh s SC ank Loca ion ac o s Local weigh s Global weigh s Fac o ank
P oduc ion cos s 0.246 2CAPEX 0.157 0.039 7
Labo cos s 0.059 0.015 21
Raw ma e ial cos s 0.293 0.072 5
Ene gy cos s (incl. GH2)0.426 0.105 2
Ou bound anspo a ion cos s 0.065 0.016 18
Regula ion and
inancing cos s
0.065 6Ca bon cos s 0.201 0.013 25
Access o subsidies 0.240 0.015 19
Access o capi al ma ke (incl.
WACC)
0.259 0.017 17
Local axa ion 0.132 0.009 30
Cus oms 0.167 0.011 29
Access o asse s 0.127 4 Access o g een p oduc ion
acili y
0.092 0.012 28
Access o labo o ces 0.120 0.015 20
Access o in as uc u e and
logis ics
0.258 0.033 9
Exis ing asse s a loca ion 0.100 0.013 26
Agglome a ion and
in eg a ion bene i s
0.431 0.055 6
Access o supply 0.294 1 P oximi y o aw ma e ial
supplie s
0.063 0.018 14
Reliable aw ma e ial supply 0.325 0.096 3
P oximi y o ene gy supplie
(incl. GH2)
0.097 0.028 11
Reliable ene gy supply (incl.
GH2)
0.409 0.120 1
Access o b idging ene gy 0.106 0.031 10
Access o demand 0.164 3P oximi y o nex p oduc ion
s ep
0.491 0.081 4
P oximi y o seconda y
p oduc ion s eps
0.073 0.012 27
P oximi y o cus ome s o inal
p oduc s
0.110 0.018 15
Flexible deli e y o inal
p oduc s
0.105 0.017 16
Size o local ma ke o inal
p oduc s
0.220 0.036 8
Poli ical en i onmen 0.067 5 S able legal and poli ical sys em 0.328 0.022 13
Indus ial iendly poli ical
a i ude
0.394 0.026 12
Low clima e ac ion egula ions 0.074 0.005 33
Reliable p oduc ion ce i ica ion 0.204 0.014 23
7789
Appendix
Syn hesized AHP Resul s o SCs, Judgmen s Ca ego ized by Chemis y (n = 10) and S eel (n = 10)
Appendix
Syn hesized AHP Resul s o Fac o s, Judgmen Ca ego ized by Chemis y (n = 10) and S eel (n = 10)
# S a egic conside a ions Chemis y local weigh s S eel local weigh s Del a local weigh s
01 P oduc ion cos s 0.257 0.232 0.02
02 Regula ion and inancing cos s 0.059 0.069 −0.01
03 Access o asse s 0.118 0.135 −0.02
04 Access o supply 0.279 0.305 −0.03
05 Access o demand 0.201 0.132 0.07
06 Poli ical en i onmen 0.048 0.091 −0.04
07 En i onmen al and social isks 0.039 0.037 0.00
No e: A del a la ge han 3% (0.03) is highligh ed in g ay.
S a egic
conside a ions
Local
weigh s SC ank Loca ion ac o s Local weigh s Global weigh s Fac o ank
En i onmen al and
social isks
0.038 7Pollu ion and en i onmen al
cons ain s
0.346 0.013 24
A ec ed communi ies'
cons ain s
0.141 0.005 32
Quali y o li e o employees 0,148 0,006 31
Occupa ional heal h and sa e y
s anda ds
0,364 0,014 22
No e: A ac o wi h a global weigh la ge han 4% (0.04) is highligh ed in g ay.
SC Fac o s Chemis y global weigh s S eel global weigh s Del a global weigh s
01 CAPEX 0.061 0.021 0.04
Labo cos s 0.013 0.014 0.00
Raw ma e ial cos s 0.093 0.050 0.04
Ene gy cos s (incl. GH2)0.076 0.129 - 0.05
Ou bound anspo a ion cos s 0.013 0.017 0.00
02 Ca bon cos s 0.015 0.009 0.01
Access o subsidies 0.007 0.031 −0.02
Access o capi al ma ke (incl.
WACC)
0.019 0.012 0.01
Local axa ion 0.008 0.008 0.00
Cus oms 0.010 0.009 0.00
03 Access o g een p oduc ion
acili y
0.009 0.015 −0.01
Access o labo o ces 0.011 0.020 −0.01
Access o in as uc u e and
logis ics
0.025 0.041 −0.02
Exis ing asse s a loca ion 0.012 0.012 0.00
Agglome a ion and in eg a ion
bene i s
0.061 0.047 0.01
7790 Business S a egy and he En i onmen , 2025
SC Fac o s Chemis y global weigh s S eel global weigh s Del a global weigh s
04 P oximi y o aw ma e ial
supplie s
0.025 0.013 0.01
Reliable aw ma e ial supply 0.114 0.075 0.04
P oximi y o ene gy supplie
(incl. GH2)
0.023 0.033 −0.01
Reliable ene gy supply (incl.
GH2)
0.093 0.147 −0.05
Access o b idging ene gy 0.024 0.037 −0.01
05 P oximi y o nex p oduc ion
s ep
0.075 0.079 0.00
P oximi y o seconda y
p oduc ion s eps
0.019 0.007 0.01
P oximi y o cus ome s o inal
p oduc s
0.024 0.012 0.01
Flexible deli e y o inal
p oduc s
0.018 0.015 0.00
Size o local ma ke o inal
p oduc s
0.064 0.019 0.05
06 S able legal and poli ical sys em 0.022 0.019 0.00
Indus ial iendly poli ical
a i ude
0.016 0.039 −0.02
Low clima e ac ion egula ions 0.003 0.007 0.00
Reliable p oduc ion ce i ica ion 0.007 0.025 −0.02
07 Pollu ion and en i onmen al
cons ain s
0.016 0.010 0.01
A ec ed communi ies'
cons ain s
0.007 0.004 0.00
Quali y o li e o employees 0.005 0.006 0.00
Occupa ional heal h and sa e y
s anda ds
0.011 0.016 0.01
No e: A del a la ge han 3% (0.03) is highligh ed in g ay.
