Consumer Perceptions of ESG Communication in the Oil and Gas Retail Sector: Evidence from Romania Using the P-ESG Scale

In the current context of ESG practices, sustainability reporting becomes very important in strengthening consumer perception about a company’s ESG performance. This study has employed the P-ESG scale to investigate how consumers relate to companies in the oil and gas industry in relation to their corporate social responsibility and sustainability activities. Specifically, this study investigates how consumers perceive the impact of ESG-related communication—particularly disclosures about community involvement—on organizational attributes such as corporate culture, internal communication, and employee engagement. Online quantitative marketing research was carried out on a sample of 400 respondents. The results show that ESG factors have a strong association with consumer perceptions on organizational transparency, effective communication and organizational culture. A negative direct relationship of ESG with the consumer perceptions regarding employee engagement is noticed, and a strong correlation between consumer perceived organizational culture and the consumer perception about employee engagement. This study contributes to defining the role of ESG reporting on the consumers perception about the company, and how ESG can be used to increase consumer trust.