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Consumer governance in electricity markets

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  • Daglish, Toby

Abstract

This paper examines switching decisions by households in the MainPower distribution area of New Zealand. The paper measures the extent to which customers switch retailers following the release of information about directors' bonuses, marketing surrounding firm ownership, and work by the New Zealand Electricity Authority to promote transparency of the switching process. We document strong customer inertia, which, for some consumers, has reduced following the Electricity Authority's interventions. Customer movements following information releases and marketing campaigns are modest, suggesting that prices and inertia may be the most important drivers of customer migration.

Suggested Citation

  • Daglish, Toby, 2016. "Consumer governance in electricity markets," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 326-337.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eneeco:v:56:y:2016:i:c:p:326-337
    DOI: 10.1016/j.eneco.2016.03.018
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Tsai, Chen-Hao & Tsai, Yi-Lin, 2018. "Competitive retail electricity market under continuous price regulation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 274-287.
    2. Ndebele, Tom & Marsh, Dan & Scarpa, Riccardo, 2019. "Consumer switching in retail electricity markets: Is price all that matters?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 88-103.
    3. He, X. & Reiner, D., 2018. "Consumer Engagement in Energy Markets: The Role of Information and Knowledge," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 1867, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    4. Schleich, Joachim & Faure, Corinne & Gassmann, Xavier, 2017. "Household electricity contract and provider switching in the EU," Working Papers "Sustainability and Innovation" S14/2017, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI).
    5. McGowan, Féidhlim & Papadopoulos, Alexandros & Lunn, Pete, 2023. "Who switches and why? A diagnostic survey of retail financial services in Ireland," Papers WP748, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI).
    6. de Bragança, Gabriel Godofredo Fiuza & Daglish, Toby, 2017. "Investing in vertical integration: electricity retail market participation," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 355-365.
    7. Muyi Yang & Yuanying Chi & Kristy Mamaril & Adam Berry & Xunpeng Shi & Liming Zhu, 2020. "Communication-Based Approach for Promoting Energy Consumer Switching: Some Evidence from Ofgem’s Database Trials in the United Kingdom," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-16, October.
    8. Fontana, Magda & Iori, Martina & Nava, Consuelo Rubina, 2017. "Switching Behavior and the Liberalization of the Italian Electricity Retail Market. Logistic and Mixed Effect Bayesian Estimations of Consumer Choice," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis. Working Papers 201721, University of Turin.
    9. Wagner, Johannes, 2018. "Distributed Generation in Unbundled Electricity Markets," EWI Working Papers 2018-1, Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universitaet zu Koeln (EWI).
    10. Pébereau, Charles & Remmy, Kevin, 2023. "Barriers to real-time electricity pricing: Evidence from New Zealand," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    11. Esplin, Ryan & Best, Rohan & Scranton, Jessica & Chai, Andreas, 2022. "Who pays the loyalty tax? The relationship between socioeconomic status and switching in Australia's retail electricity markets," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    12. Mark Tocock & Dugald Tinch & Darla Hatton MacDonald & John M. Rose, 2023. "Managing the energy trilemma of reliability, affordability and renewables: Assessing consumer demands with discrete choice experiments," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 67(2), pages 155-175, April.
    13. Fontana, Magda & Iori, Martina & Nava, Consuelo Rubina, 2019. "Switching behavior in the Italian electricity retail market: Logistic and mixed effect Bayesian estimations of consumer choice," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 339-351.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Electricity retail; Switching behaviour; Customer inertia; Price sensitivity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q41 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Demand and Supply; Prices
    • C35 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions
    • M31 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Marketing and Advertising - - - Marketing
    • M38 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Marketing and Advertising - - - Government Policy and Regulation

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