IN THE past two and a half decades, countries all over the world have sought to pursue the restructuring and introduction of competition into the electricity sector. In general, this has been prompted by the view that state ownership of utilities as well as the absence of competition, whether for privately or publicly owned utilities, invariably results in excessive costs, low service quality, poor investment decisions, and lack of innovation in delivering service to customers.
Furthermore, as has been the case in virtually every other sector of the world economy, rapid changes in technology, have created opportunities for new industrial structures capable of delivering electricity at lower cost. New technologies have impacted the generation of electricity and the computing systems used to meter and dispatch power. Customers, especially those with low levels of demand, have benefitted globally through innovations in electricity generation and customer service delivery. Unfortunately, in countries where profits are guaranteed, regulation is weak or competition is minimal (or non-existent) the electricity sectors have been slow to adapt and exploit these technological opportunities.
Models of competition
Several models of competition and industry restructuring have emerged in the past two decades. Respective country approaches usually involve one or more initiatives drawn from a portfolio of recommended practices and typically deployed on an incremental, progressive basis. Some of these include:
a)