Commentaries

Price Reviews: Compromise and Politics

23rd December 2004 commentary

Compared with the 1999/2000 price reviews in water and electricity, this time the regulators and the companies have negotiated between themselves a compromise which appears at least to have pleased most interested parties, except perhaps some customers. Unlike in December 1999, when water share prices plummeted, this time markets rallied, leaving the companies worth a bit more than their regulatory asset bases, and all the signs are that there will be few, if any, appeals to the Competition Commission.