Abstract: A decade long experience shows that monitoring the performance of public and private monopolies in South America is proving to be the hard part of the reform process. The operators who control most of the information needed for regulatory purposes have little interest in volunteering their dissemination unless they have an incentive to do so. Estache, Rossi, and Ruzzier argue that, in spite of, and maybe because of, a much weaker information base and governance structure, South America's electricity sector could pursue an approach that relies on performance rankings based on comparative efficiency measures. The authors show that with the rather modest data currently available publicly, such an approach could yield useful results. They provide estimates of efficiency levels in South America's main distribution companies between 1994 and 2000. Moreover, the authors show how relatively simple tests can be used by regulators to check the robustness of their results and strengthen their position at regulatory hearings. This paper"a joint product of the Governance, Regulation, and Finance Division, World Bank Institute, and the Finance, Private Sector, and Infrastructure Unit, Latin America and the Caribbean Region"is part of a larger effort in the institute to increase understanding of infrastructure regulation.

Bridging theory and practice, this book offers insights into how Europe has experienced the evolution of modern electricity markets from the end of the 1990s to the present day. It explores defining moments in the process, including the four waves of European legislative packages, landmark court cases, and the impact of climate strikes and marches.

The world's energy structure underpins the global environmental crisis and changing it will require regulatory change at a massive level. Energy is highly regulated in international law, but the field has never been comprehensively mapped. The legal sources on which the governance of energy is based are plentiful but they are scattered across a vast legal expanse. This book is the first single-authored study of the international law of energy as a whole. Written by a world-leading expert, it provides a comprehensive account of the international law of energy and analyses the implications of the ongoing energy transformation for international law. The study combines conceptual and doctrinal analysis of all the main rules, processes and institutions to consider the past, present and likely future of global energy governance. Providing a solid foundation for teaching, research and practice, this book addresses both the theory and real-world policy dimension of the international law of energy.

This book explores the regulatory challenges posed by the changing landscape of electricity trade to the multilateral trading system.

This open access book is an encyclopaedic analysis of the current and future energy system of the world’s most populous country and second biggest economy. What happens in China impacts the planet. In the past 40 years China has achieved one of the most remarkable economic growth rates in history. Its GDP has risen by a factor of 65, enabling 850,000 people to rise out of poverty. Growth on this scale comes with consequences. China is the world’s biggest consumer of primary energy and the world’s biggest emitter of CO2 emissions. Creating a prosperous and harmonious society that delivers economic growth and a high quality of life for all will require radical change in the energy sector, and a rewiring of the economy more widely. In China’s Energy Revolution in the Context of the Global Energy Transition, a team of researchers from the Development Research Center of the State Council of China and Shell International examine how China can revolutionise its supply and use of energy. They examine the entire energy system: coal, oil, gas, nuclear, renewables and new energies in production, conversion, distribution and consumption. They compare China with case studies and lessons learned in other countries. They ask which technology, policy and market mechanisms are required to support the change and they explore how international cooperation can smooth the way to an energy revolution in China and across the world. And, they create and compare scenarios on possible pathways to a future energy system that is low-carbon, affordable, secure and reliable.

This publication focuses on the impact of tariff orders (distribution) issued by nine SERCs (state electricity regulatory commissions) in India during 2003/04, 2004/05, and 2005/06. The states covered are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Delhi, Jharkhand, Kerala,Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal. The analysis has been undertaken based on data and information available up to January 2007. The book assesses whether the orders have resulted in reducing regulatory uncertainty and information asymmetry, and led to better performance of the distribution utilities. Different indicators have been used to assess the impact on consumption and access, efficiency, financial performance, competition, and consumer-related issues in the power sector of these states. In addition, various parameters have been studied to assess whether the regulatory systems follow the principles of good regulation in these nine states. br>The commercial loss (without subsidy) incurred by state power utilities increased from Rs 197 220 million in 2003/04 to Rs 221 290 million in 2004/05. In view of the huge losses being incurred by the utilities, the tariff determination function forms a central part of the reform process. A comprehensive survey of tariff orders issued by these SERCs for the distribution licensees has been undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of regulatory orders in the electricity sector. It assesses whether the orders have resulted in reducing regulatory uncertainty and information asymmetry and better performance of the distribution utilities. However, tariff orders are only one index of effectiveness of the regulatory commissions. It is recognized that there are many other important functions of the SERCs besides tariff-setting, and some of them have also been covered in this study.In addition, other documents available in the public domain, including the Power Sector Rating Report, prepared by the Ministry of Power, Annual Report on the Regulation in practice: impact of tariff orders on the Indian electricity sector Working of State Electricity Boards and Electricity Departments, 1 and the Report on Restructuring of APDRP (Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme),2 were also studied.