The evolution of the status of local electric and gas utilities in a competitive environment

With the establishment of a common gas and electricity market, the early 21. century is marked by important transformations in the public energy service. Directives 96/92 and 98/30, and directives 2003/54 and 2003/55, make important changes in the regulations concerning gas and electricity activates. In France, the Electricity Act 2000 (10/02/2000) and the Gas Act 2003 (03/01/2003) partially opened the public sector power distribution system to competition. These new rules will drastically modify all operators situations, including that of french local distributors (such as the 'regies', the 'SEML', or the 'SICAE or other cooperatives') who have always been, since being left out of the nationalization process, in a monopolistic situation. In order to succeed in the transition towards a free market economy, french local distributors will have to evolve from their network operator status to that of market operator by renewing their structural organisation and diversifying their activities. (author)