Regulation and the development of competition in the UK gas supply industry

When the U.K. gas supply industry was privatised, it retained its monopoly vertically integrated structure. We discuss the forces which led to the deregulation of the U.K. gas supply industry. Important factors in the process include a number of critical reports by the regulatory authorities, the growth of alternative gas supplies including the development of the spot-market, and the success of independents in gaining market share in markets opened up to competition. We also present surveys of gas users and independent gas suppliers and find that price advantage has been the critical factor in the increase in market share gained by the independent gas suppliers.