Antecedents of green process innovation adoption: An AHP analysis of China's gas sector

Due to recent natural calamities, there has been a seismic shift in public awareness in regard to the urgency of sustainability. This increased awareness, especially among consumers, is compelling businesses to adopt greener practices as a means to address the devastating consequences of climate change. Against this context, the present study explores the factors that play instrumental roles in adopting green process innovation in the natural resource exploitation sector. This study focuses on China's gas sector. The study applies a three-fold approach wherein the first phase focuses on identifying factors that can contribute to green process innovation. The identified factors are shortlisted in the second phase using a mean value approach. In the third phase Analytical Hierarchal Process (AHP), a Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) approach, is employed to prioritize the selected factors. In the first phase, 36 factors were identified using the PRISMA approach. In the second phase, 27 factors appeared as the most influential for the green innovation process and proceeded for prioritization; factors AHP findings reflect the green culture and green innovation policy are essential for green process innovation. Human capital development, sustainability policy and regulations, internal policy robustness, stakeholder engagement, and process capital are vital contributors to the green innovation process. Our findings can be helpful while developing the strategies for a transition toward a green and sustainable economy.