IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/annpce/v81y2010i2p313-356.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Public Service Perspectives On Reforms Of Electricity Distribution And Supply: A Modular Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Ute Dubois
  • Roxana Saplacan

Abstract

ABSTRACT**: This article analyzes organizational change in electricity distribution and retail businesses and its impact on public service issues. Organizational change has resulted from the European electricity directives, especially the EU Electricity directive 2003/54/EC, which has imposed major transformations on these activities, requiring legal unbundling of electricity distribution networks by 1 July 2007. Organizational change has also resulted from an adaptation of companies to the newly competitive environment. This has led to a diversity of organizational choices across Europe. We analyze this diversity by using a modular approach, which decomposes reforms in electricity distribution and retail into logical ‘blocks’. We then examine how European countries have dealt with two policy and regulatory issues related to customer protection in that new environment: the regulation of quality of distribution, which is a task of regulators, and energy affordability policies for vulnerable customers, which are a central aspect of public service policies in the electricity sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Ute Dubois & Roxana Saplacan, 2010. "Public Service Perspectives On Reforms Of Electricity Distribution And Supply: A Modular Analysis," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 81(2), pages 313-356, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:annpce:v:81:y:2010:i:2:p:313-356
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8292.2010.00413.x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8292.2010.00413.x
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/j.1467-8292.2010.00413.x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. David Sappington, 2005. "Regulating Service Quality: A Survey," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 27(2), pages 123-154, November.
    2. Giannakis, Dimitrios & Jamasb, Tooraj & Pollitt, Michael, 2005. "Benchmarking and incentive regulation of quality of service: an application to the UK electricity distribution networks," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(17), pages 2256-2271, November.
    3. Kunneke, Rolf & Fens, Theo, 2007. "Ownership unbundling in electricity distribution: The case of The Netherlands," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 1920-1930, March.
    4. Jamasb, Tooraj & Pollitt, Michael, 2007. "Incentive regulation of electricity distribution networks: Lessons of experience from Britain," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(12), pages 6163-6187, December.
    5. Cosmo Graham, 2006. "The politics of necessity: electricity and water in Great Britain," Journal of Consumer Policy, Springer, vol. 29(4), pages 435-448, December.
    6. Massimo Florio, 2007. "Electricity Prices as Signals for the Evaluation of Reforms: An Empirical Analysis of Four European Countries," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 21(1), pages 1-27.
    7. Oliver Hart & Andrei Shleifer & Robert W. Vishny, 1997. "The Proper Scope of Government: Theory and an Application to Prisons," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(4), pages 1127-1161.
    8. Kjell G. Salvanes & Sigve Tjøtta, 1998. "A Test for Natural Monopoly with Application to Norwegian Electricity Distribution," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 13(6), pages 669-685, December.
    9. Fumagalli, Elena & Garrone, Paola & Grilli, Luca, 2007. "Service quality in the electricity industry: The role of privatization and managerial behavior," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(12), pages 6212-6224, December.
    10. Saplacan, Roxana, 2008. "Competition in electricity distribution," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 231-237, December.
    11. Carliss Y. Baldwin, 2008. "Where do transactions come from? Modularity, transactions, and the boundaries of firms," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 17(1), pages 155-195, February.
    12. Gunn, Calum & Sharp, Basil, 1999. "Electricity distribution as an unsustainable natural monopoly: a potential outcome of New Zealand's regulatory regime," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 21(4), pages 385-401, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Judith Clifton & Daniel Díaz‐Fuentes & Marcos Fernández‐Gutiérrez & Julio Revuelta, 2011. "Is Market‐Oriented Reform Producing A ‘Two‐Track’ Europe? Evidence From Electricity And Telecommunications," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 82(4), pages 495-513, December.
    2. Borne, Olivier & Korte, Klaas & Perez, Yannick & Petit, Marc & Purkus, Alexandra, 2018. "Barriers to entry in frequency-regulation services markets: Review of the status quo and options for improvements," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P1), pages 605-614.
    3. Guillermo Ivan Pereira & Patrícia Pereira Silva & Deborah Soule, 2018. "Policy-adaptation for a smarter and more sustainable EU electricity distribution industry: a foresight analysis," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 231-267, December.
    4. Pier Angelo Mori, 2013. "Customer ownership of public utilities: new wine in old bottles," Journal of Entrepreneurial and Organizational Diversity, European Research Institute on Cooperative and Social Enterprises, vol. 2(1), pages 54-74, August.
    5. Soares, N. & Martins, A.G. & Carvalho, A.L. & Caldeira, C. & Du, C. & Castanheira, É. & Rodrigues, E. & Oliveira, G. & Pereira, G.I. & Bastos, J. & Ferreira, J.P. & Ribeiro, L.A. & Figueiredo, N.C. & , 2018. "The challenging paradigm of interrelated energy systems towards a more sustainable future," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 171-193.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jean-Michel Glachant, 2012. "Regulating Networks in the New Economy," Review of Economics and Institutions, Università di Perugia, vol. 3(1).
    2. Tahvanainen, Kaisa & Honkapuro, Samuli & Partanen, Jarmo & Viljainen, Satu, 2012. "Experiences of modern rate of return regulation in Finland," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(C), pages 32-39.
    3. Jamasb, Tooraj & Orea, Luis & Pollitt, Michael, 2012. "Estimating the marginal cost of quality improvements: The case of the UK electricity distribution companies," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 1498-1506.
    4. Mirza, Faisal Mehmood & Mushtaq, Iqra, 2022. "Estimating the marginal cost of improving services quality in electricity distribution utilities of Pakistan," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    5. Ajayi, Victor & Anaya, Karim & Pollitt, Michael, 2022. "Incentive regulation, productivity growth and environmental effects: the case of electricity networks in Great Britain," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    6. Angel Arcos-Vargas & Fernando Núñez & Juan Antonio Ballesteros, 2017. "Quality, remuneration and regulatory framework: some evidence on the European electricity distribution," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 51(1), pages 98-118, February.
    7. Anna Ter-Martirosyan & John Kwoka, 2010. "Incentive regulation, service quality, and standards in U.S. electricity distribution," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 38(3), pages 258-273, December.
    8. Barbosa, Ailson de Souza & Shayani, Rafael Amaral & Oliveira, Marco Aurélio Gonçalves de, 2018. "A multi-criteria decision analysis method for regulatory evaluation of electricity distribution service quality," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 38-48.
    9. Fumagalli, Elena & Garrone, Paola & Grilli, Luca, 2007. "Service quality in the electricity industry: The role of privatization and managerial behavior," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(12), pages 6212-6224, December.
    10. Jamasb, Tooraj & Pollitt, Michael, 2008. "Reference models and incentive regulation of electricity distribution networks: An evaluation of Sweden's Network Performance Assessment Model (NPAM)," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 1788-1801, May.
    11. Saastamoinen, Antti & Kuosmanen, Timo, 2016. "Quality frontier of electricity distribution: Supply security, best practices, and underground cabling in Finland," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 281-292.
    12. Schober, Dominik & Weber, Christoph, 2015. "Refinancing under yardstick regulation with investment cycles: The case of long-lived electricity network assets," ZEW Discussion Papers 15-065, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    13. Dominik Schober, 2013. "Refinancing under Yardstick Regulation with Investment Cycles–The Case of Long-Lived Electricity Network Assets," EWL Working Papers 1321, University of Duisburg-Essen, Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics, revised Jun 2013.
    14. Silvestre, Bruno & Hall, Jeremy & Matos, Stelvia & Figueira, Luiz Augusto, 2010. "Privatization of electricity distribution in the Northeast of Brazil: The good, the bad, the ugly or the naïve?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(11), pages 7001-7013, November.
    15. Yuan, Peng & Pu, Yuran & Liu, Chang, 2021. "Improving electricity supply reliability in China: Cost and incentive regulation," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 237(C).
    16. Ajayi, V. & Pollitt, M., 2022. "Changing times: Incentive regulation, corporate reorganisations, and productivity in the Great Britain’s gas networks," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 2254, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    17. Yu, William & Jamasb, Tooraj & Pollitt, Michael, 2009. "Does weather explain cost and quality performance? An analysis of UK electricity distribution companies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(11), pages 4177-4188, November.
    18. Saplacan, Roxana, 2008. "Competition in electricity distribution," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 231-237, December.
    19. Nykamp, Stefan & Andor, Mark & Hurink, Johann L., 2012. "‘Standard’ incentive regulation hinders the integration of renewable energy generation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 222-237.
    20. Michael Schmidthaler & Jed Cohen & Johannes Reichl & Stefan Schmidinger, 2015. "The effects of network regulation on electricity supply security: a European analysis," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 48(3), pages 285-316, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:annpce:v:81:y:2010:i:2:p:313-356. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=1370-4788 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.