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Regulation and investment incentives in electricity distribution: An empirical assessment

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  • Cullmann, Astrid
  • Nieswand, Maria

Abstract

We analyze the effects of incentive regulation with revenue caps on the investment behaviors of 109 German electricity distribution companies. We hypothesize that with Germany's implementation of incentive regulation in 2009 firms increase their investments in the base year when the rate base is determined for the following regulatory period. We build a model that controls for both firm-specific heterogeneity and ownership. The results show that investments increase after 2009, especially in the base year. We find that publicly owned firms do not exhibit a different investment behavior than private firms. We conclude that a comprehensive assessment of investment decisions should include all institutional aspects of incentive regulation.

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  • Cullmann, Astrid & Nieswand, Maria, 2016. "Regulation and investment incentives in electricity distribution: An empirical assessment," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 192-203.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:57:y:2016:i:c:p:192-203
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2016.05.007
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    3. Balázs Égert, 2021. "Investment in OECD Countries: a Primer," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 63(2), pages 200-223, June.
    4. Michael Hellwig & Dominik Schober & Luis Cabral, 2018. "Incentive Regulation: Evidence From German Electricity Networks," Working Papers 18-03, New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics.
    5. Dengjun Zhang & Jinghua Xie, 2017. "Investment and revenue cap under incentive regulation: The case study of the Norwegian electricity distributors," Cogent Economics & Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(1), pages 1400900-140, January.
    6. Ribeiro, Beatriz Couto & Ferrero, Luciane Graziele Pereira & Bin, Adriana & Blind, Knut, 2023. "Effects of innovation stimuli regulation in the electricity sector: A quantitative study on European countries," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    7. Avdasheva, Svetlana & Orlova, Yulia, 2020. "Effects of long-term tariff regulation on investments under low credibility of rules: Rate-of-return and price cap in Russian electricity grids," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    8. Liebensteiner, Mario & Wrienz, Matthias, 2020. "Do Intermittent Renewables Threaten the Electricity Supply Security?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    9. Matschoss, Patrick & Bayer, Benjamin & Thomas, Heiko & Marian, Adela, 2019. "The German incentive regulation and its practical impact on the grid integration of renewable energy systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 727-738.
    10. Enriquez, Alejandra & Ramirez, Jose Carlos & Rosellon, Juan, 2019. "Costos De Generación, Inversión Y Precios Del Sector Eléctrico En México [Generation Costs, Investment And Prices In The Electricity Sector In Mexico]," MPRA Paper 98084, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Carlo Cambini & Raffaele Congiu & Golnoush Soroush, 2020. "Regulation, Innovation, and Systems Integration: Evidence from the EU," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-18, April.
    12. Gugler, Klaus & Liebensteiner, Mario, 2019. "Productivity growth and incentive regulation in Austria's gas distribution," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    13. Warren, Liz & Jack, Lisa, 2018. "The capital budgeting process and the energy trilemma - A strategic conduct analysis," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(5), pages 481-496.
    14. Brown, David P. & Sappington, David E. M., 2023. "Designing Incentive Regulation in the Electricity Sector," Working Papers 2023-10, University of Alberta, Department of Economics.
    15. Hellwig, Michael & Schober, Dominik & Cabral, Luís, 2020. "Low-powered vs high-powered incentives: Evidence from German electricity networks," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    16. Pereira, Guillermo Ivan & Pereira da Silva, Patrícia & Cerqueira, Pedro André, 2020. "Electricity distribution incumbents' adaptation toward decarbonized and smarter grids: Evidence on the role market, regulatory, investment, and firm-level factors," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C).
    17. Nolting, Lars & Schuller, Vanessa & Gaumnitz, Felix & Praktiknjo, Aaron, 2019. "Incentivizing timely investments in electrical grids: Analysis of the amendment of the German distribution grid regulation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 754-763.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Incentive regulation; Electricity distribution; Investments; Germany;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L94 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Electric Utilities
    • L51 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Economics of Regulation
    • L98 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Government Policy

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