Private Sector Participation in the Power Sector in Europe and Central Asia
From energypedia
Private Sector Participation in the Power Sector in Europe and Central Asia
Title | Private Sector Participation in the Power Sector in Europe and Central Asia |
Author | World Bank |
Year | 2003 |
Region/Country | |
Topics | Finance |
Document Type | Study & Report |
File Download |
► English : Private Sector Participation in the Power Sector in Europe and Central Asia.pdf |
Language(s) | English |
Abstract | This brief desk research study reviews the experience of the Bank’s operations in the electricity sector in ECA countries during the 1990s. The operations during this decade focused on sector restructuring, privatization, and introduction of competition to improve the performance of the sector. These efforts met with a measure of success in certain countries and great deal of difficulties and problems in others. Four case studies relating to countries which are preparing for EU accession and six case studies relating to former Soviet Union countries have been prepared;based on these studies and on the information relating to other countries, lessons have been drawn on the sequence of reforms and essential preconditions for success. Key lessons relate to the importance of legal reform, tariff reform, social protection measures, and comprehensive commercialization of the operations of the utilities before undertaking structural changes,introduction of competitive markets, and privatization. The study highlights the importance of not using any single model of reform in all countries and the imperative need to design the content, the level of sophistication, sequencing, and timing of the reform package for each country based on the endowments and the conditions prevailing in that country. In particular,the importance of choosing market structures appropriate to the circumstances of each country has been emphasized. Good practices enabling successful and sustainable privatization of power sector assets to strategic investors and securing optimal privatization receipts have been identified.In the context of declining interest of strategic investors in the emerging markets, the present report is topical and should help staff in refocusing their attention to the core objectives of the Bank’s operations, and preparing the utilities and the sector more fully for privatization when the investor interest revives. |