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Regulatory incentives to water losses reduction: the case of England and Wales

Author

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  • Humberto Brea-Solis

    (Université Côte d’Azur, SKEMA)

  • Sergio Perelman

    (University of Liege (ULg), HEC Management School)

  • David Saal

    (Loughborough University)

Abstract

In recent years, England and Wales have suffered droughts. This unusual situation defies the common belief that the British climate provides abundant water resources and has prompted the regulatory authorities to impose bans on superfluous uses of water. Furthermore, a large percentage of households in England consume unmetered water which is detrimental to water saving efforts. Given this context, we estimate the shadow price of water using a panel data from reports published by the Office of Water Services (Ofwat) for the period 1996 to 2010 (three regulatory periods). These shadow prices are derived from a parametric multi-output, multi-input, input distance function characterized by a translog technology. Following O'Donnell and Coelli (2005), we use a Bayesian econometric framework in order to impose regularity—monotonicity and curvature—conditions on a high-flexible technology. Consequently, our results can be interpreted at the firm level without requiring the need to base analysis on the averages. Our estimations offer guidance for regulation purposes and provide an assessment of how the water supply companies deal with water losses under each regulatory period. The relevance of the study is quite general as water scarcity is a problem that will become more important with population growth and the impact of climate change.

Suggested Citation

  • Humberto Brea-Solis & Sergio Perelman & David Saal, 2017. "Regulatory incentives to water losses reduction: the case of England and Wales," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 259-276, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:jproda:v:47:y:2017:i:3:d:10.1007_s11123-017-0496-4
    DOI: 10.1007/s11123-017-0496-4
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    5. María Molinos-Senante & Simon Porcher & Alexandros Maziotis, 2017. "Impact of regulation on English and Welsh water-only companies: an input-distance function approach," Post-Print hal-02146495, HAL.
    6. Sala-Garrido, Ramon & Mocholi-Arce, Manuel & Molinos-Senante, Maria & Maziotis, Alexandros, 2021. "Assessing the marginal cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the English and Welsh water and sewerage industry: A parametric approach," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    7. Maziotis, Alexandros & Sala-Garrido, Ramon & Mocholi-Arce, Manuel & Molinos-Senante, Maria, 2023. "Cost and quality of service performance in the Chilean water industry: A comparison of stochastic approaches," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 211-219.
    8. Manuel Mocholi-Arce & Ramon Sala-Garrido & Maria Molinos-Senante & Alexandros Maziotis, 2022. "Measuring the eco-efficiency of the provision of drinking water by two-stage network data envelopment analysis," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(11), pages 12883-12899, November.
    9. Ramón Sala-Garrido & Manuel Mocholí-Arce & María Molinos-Senante & Alexandros Maziotis, 2021. "Comparing Operational, Environmental and Eco-Efficiency of Water Companies in England and Wales," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-14, June.
    10. Mocholi-Arce, Manuel & Sala-Garrido, Ramon & Molinos-Senante, Maria & Maziotis, Alexandros, 2021. "Water company productivity change: A disaggregated approach accounting for changes in inputs and outputs," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    11. Maria Molinos-Senante & Alexandros Maziotis, 2022. "Decomposition of Cost Efficiency Into Persistent and Transient Efficiency in the Provision of Water Services: Evidence from England and Wales," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(6), pages 1849-1862, April.
    12. Ramon Sala-Garrido & Manuel Mocholi-Arce & Maria Molinos-Senante & Michail Smyrnakis & Alexandros Maziotis, 2021. "Eco-Efficiency of the English and Welsh Water Companies: A Cross Performance Assessment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-17, March.
    13. Maziotis, Alexandros & Molinos-Senante, Maria, 2022. "The impact of model specification and environmental variables on measuring the overall technical efficiency of water and sewerage services: Evidence from Chile," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 191-198.

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