Do ESG controversies moderate the relationship between CSR and corporate financial performance in oil and gas firms?

Abstract The oil and gas industry is enmeshed in a continuous debate regarding the negative impact that its activity has on the sustainability of the environment. Increasingly, the market and stakeholders are positively evaluating those firms which are socially responsible and penalizing those that are not. Literature has analyzed the market view through the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) controversies and their relationship with Corporate Financial Performance (CFP), as well as with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy. This study analyzes the influence of ESG controversies as a moderating variable on the relationship between Environmental, Social, and Governance factors and Corporate Financial Performance from a market valuation perspective. To perform this analysis, PLS-SEM structural equations have been applied to a sample of 264 oil and gas firms globally. The results confirm the moderating influence of ESG controversies on the relationship between E, S, and G factors and Corporate Financial Performance.