Chase the Wind and Follow the Sun: A Multi-level Quantitative Analysis of Determinants of State-hybrids' International Strategy in the Sustainable Electricity Industry

The cross-border diffusion of sustainable technology matters for the combat against climate change – a problem recently coined by international business scholars as a “grand challenge” of our time. In this context, we investigate determinants of the international strategy of “state hybrids” in the sustainable electricity industry. To answer this question, we study the internationalization of two front-runner firms in this industry. We apply a case-based research approach and take a historical perspective to explain the firms’ contemporary stage of internationalization. Enabled by favorable support from the institutional environment in their home countries, and driven by the liberalization of the electricity market in Europe, the internationalization of the firms evolved as an outcome of a combination of market pull factors and technology push. Notably, the change from fossil fuel-based technologies to renewable energy created a new industry that entailed different patterns of internationalization in the industry. In addition, decisions by top management at critical moments played pivotal roles in the strategic change and internationalization of the firms. Theoretically, we suggest that analysis of the interdependent relationship between influential factors and inclusion of micro-level factors can contribute to global strategy research.