To corporatize or not to corporatize (and if so, how?)

Governments around the world are increasingly turning to the use of stand-alone, state-owned utilities to deliver core services such as water and electricity. This article reviews the history of such ‘corporatization’ and argues that its recent resurgence has been heavily influenced by neoliberal theory and practice, raising important questions about whether it should be adopted as a public service model. Not all corporatizations promote commercialization, however. The article also discusses stand-alone utilities that have managed to stave off market pressures and develop in more equity-oriented directions. The scope for non-commercialized corporatization is narrow, but given the expansion of this organizational model it is important that we understand both its limitations and potentials, particularly in low-income countries in the South where service gaps are large and equity is a major challenge.