Electricity price: between market, regulation and subsidy

Electricity is a merchandise as well as a public service. It is sold through a network which is interconnected at the European level and which requires a specific management. It is also a product which cannot be stored at large scale and at acceptable costs with the present technologies. However, electric power is not a merchandise like any other. If it is no exception to market rules, and, as outlined by the author, its management depends on political decisions for its production as well as for network organisation. In this note, the author thus explores the peculiarities of this network industry, its evolutions between a 'market wave' (a liberalisation still framed by a strong regulation with a progressive opening to competition and some exceptions to competition rules) and a 'green wave' (an expensive option which disturbs the market with notions like mandatory purchase and negative prices). All this leads to reform perspectives under societal, economic, technological and institutional uncertainties.