Best practices in the energy sector: restructuring, privatisation - the road ahead

In June 2003, the Energy Charter Conference welcomed the release of the Best Practices Guidelines on Restructuring (including Privatisation) in the Energy Sector. A year later, on 12 May 2004, the Energy Charter Secretariat organised a workshop to assess the restructuring experiences and seek to map the road ahead. The Workshop brought together representatives from governments, energy companies, international organisations, financial institutions, and regulators, with the objective to identify the pitfalls that prevent obtaining the potential gains of energy sector restructuring and privatisation programmes and help to further develop the best practices in this area.

Workshop presentations

Session One: Lessons learned from past privatisations and restructuring: the ECT experience

Problems of commercialisation and competition
Building up markets Government policies
Tariffs, pricing, subsidies

Session Moderator: Dr. Miroslaw Duda

Speakers

The IFC's Outlook on Priorities in Energy Sector Privatisation and Restructuring
by Denis Clarke, Chief Investment Officer IFC

Restructuring and Privatisation of the Electric Power Company of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
by Pierre Heidebroek, Meinlbank, Austria

The EBRD's Policies and Experiences in the Energy Sector
by Maria Vagliasindi, EBRD

Energy Tariffs Design: Theory and Practice
by Evangelos Penglis, Director, International Business Development (Energy and Infrastructure), Kantor, Greece

Privatising Electricity Distribution in Romania: Recent Experiences
by Sean Gammons, Senior Consultant, NERA Energy Practice, Brussels

Session Two: The network industries: restructuring, quality, reliability

Restructuring and approaches to third party access and capacity allocation
Impacts of restructuring and privatisation on investment, inter-regional and international trade
Restructuring, unbundling: The role of private capital

Session Moderator: Erik Sørensen

Speakers

Some Views from the Commission on Future Development of the Internal Electricity Market in Europe
by Basil Stergiou, EC DG-TREN

Poland's experience from Energy Sector Restructuring and Privatisation process
by Elzbieta Wroblewska, Ministry of Economy, Labour and Social Policy, Poland

Is Regulation a Substitute for Competition? - Some Experiences in the Power Sector
by Pearse Corbett, ESBI, Ireland

Restructuring and Privatisation in Kosovo
by Kevin McCann, Kosovo Trust Agency

Security of Energy Supply, the Environment - Regulatory Challenges
by Jacques de Jong, Fellow, Clingendael International Energy Programme (CIEP); Senior Advisor

ETSO's Vision on Congestion Management: the Best Options
by Hedwig D'Haeseleer, ETSO

Session Three: Policy options in regulation: avoiding the pitfalls

Regulation and competition: striking the right balance
Challenges posed by differing speed and direction of restructuring between countries
Regulation, vulnerable groups and environment protection

Session Moderator: Boyko Nitzov

Speakers

Session Key Focus Presentation on Regulation and Competition
by Paul Bulteel, Secretary General, EURELECTRIC

Impact of Regulation on the Investment Climate for Gas in Europe
by Lex Huurdeman, Shell International Exploration & Production

Building Better Gas Markets: Regulation in Europe and Beyond
by Mark Iden, Diplomacy International, Switzerland

Energy Sector Restructuring in South Eastern Europe (Reform Sequencing and Alternative Methods of Privatisation)
by Bernard Snoy, Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe

Market Restructuring and Investment in Gas and Electricity Sectors in the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Countries
by Benoit Esnault, OME