ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the responses of multinational enterprises (MNEs) to the climate change issue in the oil and automobile industries. MNEs facing global issues such as climate change are immersed in multiple institutional contexts, subjecting them to competing pressures. The oil industry is even more global in scope than the auto industry, given the undifferentiated nature of the product and the international scope of oil extraction, refining and retail operations. By comparison, US-based auto companies were planning a car of the future that would not require any change in transportation patterns, road infrastructure or social conceptions of cars; rather, all the burden of emissions reduction would be placed on advanced automotive technologies. Meanwhile, companies were free to sell large and highly profitable SUVs and trucks in the US market, where fuel remains cheap and particulate emissions from diesels are more tightly regulated.
