Anchoring industrial symbiosis in the context of policy change

Anchoring plays a crucial role in fostering industrial symbiosis (IS). Understanding anchor firms’ motivations and driving policy conditions is essential for encouraging proactive participation in IS. Through a longitudinal case study of the Pingshuo Coal Gangue Power Plant's IS network (PSIS), which received the China Industry Award, we investigated how fluctuations in policy conditions influenced the anchor firm's motivation and, consequently, shaped the outcomes of IS development. The results showed that the PSIS was anchored by a coal gangue power plant and evolved in two phases. In Phase 1, the incentive for a value added tax reduction led to the anchor's deliberate IS orchestration. In Phase 2, the incentive was dismantled, environmental regulations became strict, and the energy system underwent structural changes; therefore, the primary motivations for anchoring shifted toward reducing waste disposal costs and seeking business opportunities through waste utilization. However, although motivations differed between phases, financial profits remained fundamental. The results of this study improve the understanding that policy changes alter anchor strategies and avenues to pursue financial profits. They also offer three policy implications: developing targeted incentives to initiate IS, cultivating a corporate strategic vision for waste utilization, and fostering an entrepreneurial spirit to promote proactive anchoring and participation in IS.