Citation: Yuan, Y.; Zhang, B.;
Wang, L.; Wang, L. Low-Carbon
Strategies Considering Corporate
Environmental Responsibility: Based
on Carbon Trading and Carbon
Reduction Technology Investment.
Sustainability 2022, 14, 6683.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116683
Academic Editors: João Carlos de
Oliveira Matias and Paolo Renna
Received: 3 May 2022
Accepted: 27 May 2022
Published: 30 May 2022
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Article
Low-Carbon Strategies Considering Corporate Environmental
Responsibility: Based on Carbon Trading and Carbon
Reduction Technology Investment
Yanhong Yuan
1,
* , Bowen Zhang
1
, Lei Wang
1
and Li Wang
2
1
College of Economics and Management, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China;
zhangbw611@163.com (B.Z.); cumtwl504@163.com (L.W.)
2
School of Science, Shenyang Aerospace University, Shenyang 110136, China; liwang211@163.com
* Correspondence: yuanyanhong2020@126.com
Abstract:
This paper focuses on the optimal strategic choice of carbon trading and carbon reduction
technology investment under the cap-and-trade system. We consider a carbon-dependent production
enterprise that trades carbon emission rights or invests in carbon reduction technologies under
the regulation of the cap-and-trade system. The enterprise undertakes corporate environmental
responsibility (CER) and aims to maximize the comprehensive benefits of both the economy and
the environment. Using numerical simulation, we analyze the impacts of the CER coefficient and
initial carbon quotas on the comprehensive benefits, optimal emission reduction rate, and production
quantity of the enterprise. Our main contribution is studying the low-carbon strategic option for CER
production enterprises to maximize the comprehensive benefits by trading carbon emission permits
or investing in carbon emission reduction technologies. We found that the carbon emission trading
mechanism plays an important role in promoting enterprises to reduce carbon emissions and is a
beneficial supplement to the carbon cap policy. Under different initial carbon quotas allocated by
the government, the manufacturer strategically chooses to trade carbon emission rights or invest in
carbon reduction technologies. CER is a significant factor in encouraging companies to reduce carbon
emissions proactively.
Keywords:
cap-and-trade; corporate environmental responsibility; carbon reduction; strategic choice;
comprehensive benefits; carbon reduction technology investment
1. Introduction
With the increase in greenhouse gas emissions, the danger of global warming is
becoming more and more jeopardizing. The 2016 Paris Agreement set the goal of global
“carbon neutrality”, and many countries have actively responded to make carbon reduction
commitments. In 2020, China proposed in its 14th Five-Year Plan that it would accelerate
green development and formulate an action plan to reach a peak in carbon emissions by
2030. In 2021, the European Commission unveiled a climate package called Fit for 55,
which promised to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by the end of 2030 compared
with 1990 levels. This means that various industries, especially the fossil fuel industry,
transportation industry, and other energy-intensive industries, are facing a tougher test
of carbon emission reduction. To achieve the carbon reduction commitments, countries
have adopted relevant systems to reduce the carbon emissions of such enterprises [
1
,
2
].
The cap-and-trade system introduced by the EU in 2005 is regarded as an effective way to
promote carbon emission reduction among enterprises [
3
]. Under a cap-and-trade scheme,
companies are subject to a cap on their carbon emissions; if they can meet their targets and
have a surplus of emissions quotas, they can sell the remaining carbon emission rights to
companies that fail to meet their carbon emission targets.
Sustainability 2022, 14, 6683. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116683 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability
