Green innovation in natural resource industries: The case of local suppliers in the Peruvian mining industry. Issue 2 (April 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Aron, Ana Sofía; Molina, Oswaldo
• Is Part Of: Extractive industries and society. Volume 7:Issue 2(2020)
• Page Start: 353
• Page End: 365
• Publication Date: 2020-04
• Subjects: Green innovations -- Sustainable innovations -- Natural resource industries -- Suppliers; Mineral industries -- Periodicals; Gas industry -- Periodicals; Petroleum industry and trade -- Periodicals; 338.205
• DOI: 10.1016/j.exis.2019.09.002
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2214-790X

Abstract

Highlights: Concerns on climate change and stringent environmental regulations have created opportunities for suppliers that offer green innovations. Suppliers who undertake green innovations tend to be emergent and depend on governmental financing and linkages with research centers. Successful green innovative suppliers tend to have teams with intensive academic training in engineering and R&D areas within their firms. Green innovation patterns among local suppliers tend to depend on external incentives posed by multinational firms which govern the value chain. Abstract: Concerns about climate change are gaining notoriety and are exerting pressure for tougher environmental regulations for the mining sector. Demand for sustainable methods of production has increased and has created opportunities for Peruvian mining suppliers that offer green innovations. In this paper, we follow the technological trajectories of a set of local firms who successfully undertook green innovations in order to analyze the main factors that determined their development and integration into the mining value chain. In particular, our findings show that these suppliers share internal factors such as highly specialized human capital and considerable technological effort that led to their innovations. Likewise, there are some external factors that drive innovation in local suppliers such as the market structure and value chains as well as linkages with stakeholders within the mining sector and research centers and access to external funding provided by the government. However, the examples of successful innovative firms are still scarce and limited by the captive structure of the value chain in the industry. In this structure, multinational mining companies favor incumbent suppliers with a positive trajectory in the market. The structure also generates financial constraints and a lack of communication and coordination channels among the stakeholders.