Heuristics for advancing the theory of restructured electricity industries

Electricity industry restructuring involves reorganizing a formally centralized monopoly in a way that facilitates the participation of the private sector while also ensuring that the industry is planned and operated in a way that benefits society. This occurs in an environment that lacks the sound theoretical basis that other forms of engineering are able to leverage. The purpose of this paper is to consider the issues inherent in the organisation of a restructured industry from a conceptual perspective, with particular emphasis on the areas that will assist in the formulation of mathematical models of restructured electricity industries. Where possible linkages to concepts arising in systems theory are observed. It is not contended that systems theory is capable of addressing all aspects of the electricity industry restructuring process; instead it is hoped that new insights into the restructuring process may be gained if the concepts are pursued rigorously.