Abuse of market power by dominant generation firms is a growing concern in worldwide electricity markets. This paper argues that relying only on general competition rules--as is the case in most European countries--is insufficient and that complementary ex-ante regulation is needed. In...

In a competitive electricity market, nodal pricing is the most efficient way to manage congestion. Counter-trading is inefficient as it gives the wrong long term signals for entry and exit of power plants. However, in a non-competitive market, additional entry will improve the competitiveness of...