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Internal Regulation By Mixed Enterprises: The Case Of The Italian Water Sector

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  • Alessandro MARRA

Abstract

ABSTRACT**: This paper aims at proposing an economic analysis of mixed enterprises in local utilities. We suggest that the public service concession to mixed enterprises could embody a noteworthy substitute to the traditional public provision and the concession to totally private enterprises. The starting point of the entire analysis is that ownership allows the (public) owner to gather more information about the actual management of the firm, according to property rights theory. Following it, we conclude that under certain conditions mixed enterprises could significantly reduce asymmetric information between regulators and regulated firms by implementing a sort of ‘internal’ regulation. With more information, the public authority can stimulate the private operator to be more efficient and can monitor it more effectively with respect to the fulfilment of contractual obligations. Moreover, concerning the latter function, the board of directors of these enterprises can be the suitable place where public and private representatives can meet to solve all disputes arising from incomplete contracts.

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  • Alessandro MARRA, 2007. "Internal Regulation By Mixed Enterprises: The Case Of The Italian Water Sector," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 78(2), pages 245-275, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:annpce:v:78:y:2007:i:2:p:245-275
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8292.2007.00334.x
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    3. da Cruz, Nuno F. & Marques, Rui Cunha, 2013. "Mixed companies as local utilities," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 59761, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. A. Marra & V. Carlei, 2014. "Institutional Environment And Partial Privatizations: Policy Implications For Local Governments," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(1), pages 31-52, March.
    5. Nuno Ferreira da Cruz & Pedro Simões & Rui Cunha Marques, 2013. "The Hurdles of Local Governments with Ppp Contracts in the Waste Sector," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 31(2), pages 292-307, April.
    6. Aidan R. Vining & David L. Weimer, 2016. "The challenges of fractionalized property rights in public‐private hybrid organizations: The good, the bad, and the ugly," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 10(2), pages 161-178, June.
    7. Ruiz-Villaverde, Alberto & González-Gómez, Francisco & J. Picazo- Tadeo, Andrés, 2015. "The privatisation of urban water services: theory and empirical evidence in the case of Spain," INVESTIGACIONES REGIONALES - Journal of REGIONAL RESEARCH, Asociación Española de Ciencia Regional, issue 31, pages 157-174.
    8. Mark A. Moore & Aidan R. Vining, 2023. "PPP performance evaluation: the social welfare goal, principal–agent theory and political economy," Policy Sciences, Springer;Society of Policy Sciences, vol. 56(2), pages 267-299, June.
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    10. Di Giulio, Marco & Galanti, Maria Tullia & Moro, Francesco Niccolò, 2016. "Political coalitions, local leaders and the internationalization of local public services in Italy," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 144-151.
    11. Marques, Rui Cunha & Berg, Sanford V, 2010. "Revisiting the strengths and limitations of regulatory contracts in infrastructure industries," MPRA Paper 32890, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. N.F. Cruz & R.C. Marques & A. Marra & C. Pozzi, 2014. "Local Mixed Companies: The Theory And Practice In An International Perspective," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(1), pages 1-9, March.
    13. Ruiz-Villaverde, Alberto & Picazo-Tadeo, Andrés J. & González-Gómez, Francisco, 2015. "The ‘social choice’ of privatising urban water services: A case study of Madrid in Spain," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 616-629.
    14. da Cruz, Nuno F. & Marques, Rui Cunha, 2012. "Mixed companies and local governance: no man can serve two masters," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 59778, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    15. Romano, Giulia & Guerrini, Andrea & Campedelli, Bettina, 2015. "The new Italian water tariff method: A launching point for novel infrastructures or a backwards step?," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 45-53.
    16. A. Asquer, 2014. "Explaining Partial Privatization Of Public Service Provision: The Emergence Of Mixed Ownership Water Firms In Italy (1994–2009)," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(1), pages 11-30, March.
    17. Vining, Aidan R. & Moore, Mark A., 2017. "Potash ownership and extraction: Between a rock and a hard place in Saskatchewan," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 71-80.
    18. Bart Voorn & Marieke van Genugten & Sandra Van Thiel, 2020. "Performance of municipally owned corporations: Determinants and mechanisms," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 91(2), pages 191-212, June.
    19. Aidan R. VINING & Anthony E. BOARDMAN & Mark A. MOORE, 2014. "The Theory And Evidence Pertaining To Local Government Mixed Enterprises," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(1), pages 53-86, March.
    20. Sanford V. Berg & Makoto Okamura & Haruka Yane & Shinji Yane, 2022. "Efficient performance by companies with mixed ownership: Privatization and divestiture of a vertically integrated public monopoly," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 93(3), pages 717-730, September.
    21. Guerrini, Andrea & Romano, Giulia, 2013. "The process of tariff setting in an unstable legal framework: An Italian case study," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(C), pages 78-85.
    22. Landriani, Loris & Lepore, Luigi & D'Amore, Gabriella & Pozzoli, Stefano & Alvino, Federico, 2019. "Decorporatization of a municipal water utility: A case study from Italy," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 43-47.

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