Regulation, Industry Structure and Market Power Conference 2003

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) hosted its fourth conference on key regulatory issues of national significance, focussing on "Regulation, Industry Structure and Market Power".  International speakers included:

• Professor David Newbery, Director of the Department of Applied Economics, University of Cambridge
• Professor Roger Noll, Economics Department, Stanford University
• Dr Richard O'Neill, Chief Economic Adviser, US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The Conference presented the work of a range of experts in analysing utility industries and in regulatory design and evaluation.  It considered trends in regulatory practice in Australia, the United States, Europe and elsewhere.

Particular topics discussed:

• measuring and mitigating market power in utility industries
• sources and leveraging of market power in regulated industries
• separation: accounting and structural approaches
• key structural and market power issues in electricity, gas, telecommunications and rail will be debated in industry-specific sessions.