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Have customers benefited from electricity retail competition?

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  • Xuejuan Su

Abstract

Compared to traditional cost-of-service regulation, electricity retail competition may lead to lower costs but higher markups. Thus, the net policy effect on the average electricity retail price is ambiguous. This paper uses a difference-in-difference approach to estimate the policy impact for U.S. states that restructured their electricity retail markets. The results suggest that in restructured states, only residential customers have benefited from significantly lower prices but not commercial or industrial customers. Furthermore, this benefit is transitory and disappears in the long run. Overall, retail competition does not seem to deliver lower electricity prices to retail customers across the board or over time. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Xuejuan Su, 2015. "Have customers benefited from electricity retail competition?," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 47(2), pages 146-182, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:regeco:v:47:y:2015:i:2:p:146-182
    DOI: 10.1007/s11149-014-9263-x
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    Cited by:

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    2. Tin Cheuk Leung & Kwok Ping Ping & Kevin K. Tsui, 2019. "What can deregulators deregulate? The case of electricity," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 56(1), pages 1-32, August.
    3. Bell, William Paul & Zheng, Xuemei, 2018. "Inclusive growth and climate change adaptation and mitigation in Australia and China : Removing barriers to solving wicked problems," MPRA Paper 84509, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Wakiyama, Takako & Zusman, Eric, 2021. "The impact of electricity market reform and subnational climate policy on carbon dioxide emissions across the United States: A path analysis," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    5. Sen Guo & Wenyue Zhang & Xiao Gao, 2020. "Business Risk Evaluation of Electricity Retail Company in China Using a Hybrid MCDM Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-21, March.
    6. Alexander Hill, 2023. "Price freezes and gas pass-through: an estimation of the price impact of electricity market restructuring," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 63(1), pages 87-116, April.
    7. Simone Di Leo & Marta Chicca & Cinzia Daraio & Andrea Guerrini & Stefano Scarcella, 2022. "A Framework for the Analysis of the Sustainability of the Energy Retail Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-28, June.
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    9. David Martimort & Jérôme Pouyet & Carine Staropoli, 2020. "Use and abuse of regulated prices in electricity markets: “How to regulate regulated prices?”," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 605-634, July.
    10. Uddin, Gazi Salah & Hasan, Md. Bokhtiar & Phoumin, Han & Taghizadeh-Hesary, Farhad & Ahmed, Ali & Troster, Victor, 2023. "Exploring the critical demand drivers of electricity consumption in Thailand," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    11. Daglish, Toby, 2015. "Consumer Governance in Electricity Markets," Working Paper Series 19259, Victoria University of Wellington, The New Zealand Institute for the Study of Competition and Regulation.
    12. Duso, Tomaso & Szücs, Florian, 2017. "Market power and heterogeneous pass-through in German electricity retail," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 354-372.
    13. Daglish, Toby, 2015. "Consumer Governance in Electricity Markets," Working Paper Series 4183, Victoria University of Wellington, The New Zealand Institute for the Study of Competition and Regulation.
    14. Tsai, Chen-Hao & Tsai, Yi-Lin, 2018. "Competitive retail electricity market under continuous price regulation," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 274-287.
    15. Amenta, Carlo & Aronica, Martina & Stagnaro, Carlo, 2022. "Is more competition better? Retail electricity prices and switching rates in the European Union," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    16. Agustin J. Ros, 2020. "Does electricity competition work for residential consumers? Evidence from demand models for default and competitive residential electricity services," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 1-32, August.
    17. Mukherjee, Maitreyee & Jensen, Olivia, 2022. "Open Water: Impacts of Retail Competition on Service Performance and Water-Use Efficiency in England," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    18. Haar, Lawrence, 2021. "The competitive disadvantages facing British assetless electricity retailers," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    19. Daglish, Toby, 2016. "Consumer governance in electricity markets," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 326-337.
    20. Brown, David P. & Eckert, Andrew, 2018. "The effect of default rates on retail competition and pricing decisions of competitive retailers: The case of Alberta," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 298-311.
    21. Bowen, William M. & Hill, Edward (Ned) & Thomas, Andrew & Liu, Ruoran & Henning, Mark, 2023. "Consumer price effects of deregulated electric generation markets: The case of Ohio and the midwestern United States," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    22. Zarnikau, J. & Cao, K.H. & Qi, H.S. & Woo, C.K., 2023. "Has retail competition reduced residential electricity prices in Texas?," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 84(C).
    23. Matsukawa, Isamu, 2019. "Detecting collusion in retail electricity markets: Results from Japan for 2005 to 2010," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 16-23.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Electricity; Restructuring; Retail choice; retail competition; Difference-in-difference; L52; K23; Q48; D42; D43;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D42 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Monopoly
    • D43 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Oligopoly and Other Forms of Market Imperfection
    • K23 - Law and Economics - - Regulation and Business Law - - - Regulated Industries and Administrative Law
    • L52 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Industrial Policy; Sectoral Planning Methods
    • Q48 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Energy - - - Government Policy

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