System Balance Index as an Indicator of the Russian Gas Industry’s Sustainable Growth

Abstract

The paper examines an approach to developing a strategy for the Russian gas industry’s sustainable growth based on the system economic theory’s methodology. The aim of the study is to evaluate the current state of the industry by calculating sustainable growth indices. Grey Relational Analysis (GRA) reveals a deep relationship between sustainable growth indices and Return on equity ( ROE ), Lambert Energy Index ( LEI ), Return on environmental investments (ROE env ), and Return on social investments (ROE sr ). The system balance index ( SBI ) is calculated, which expresses the intensity of links between the financial, energy, environmental and social subsystems of the gas industry. The results show that the Russian gas industry companies are characterized by a low level of ROE env or ROE sr , negatively affecting the SBI value. The authors conclude the importance of environmental protection and social responsibility for achieving sustainable industry growth should not be underestimated. This circumstance should be taken into account when setting strategic goals for companies in the gas industry. According to the authors, applying system economic theory to achieve sustainable growth goals has huge potential to overcome economic phenomena and improve company management practices.