Strategic Considerations for Green Relocation in Energy-Intensive Global Value Chains

This study examines how strategic considerations influence the green relocation of value chain steps for energy-intensive industries in regions with scarce renewable energy resources. Drawing on 66 expert interviews in steel and chemistry from a European perspective, the results reveal three recent, global, and overarching tendencies: a slowed yet ongoing sustainable transition, increasing cost pressures, and rising national ambitions for energy and resource independence. A tripartite strategy for European energy-intensive industries emerges: consolidate downstream production, maintain minimal full-chain capacity in renewable-rich European regions, and globally diversify upstream imports. Canada, the Middle East, and leading African and South American countries are identified as attractive green relocation targets by applying a newly developed value chain positioning model. The study contributes to the literature by enhancing understanding of an evolving industrial ecology characterized by reconfigured value chains and material flows, highlighting strategic considerations that increasingly surpass pure cost optimization – insights that extend beyond the research’s empirical scope. Lastly, the study offers directions for future research and provides strategic guidance for policymakers and firms navigating green industrial transitions.