European utilities policy: The emerging legal framework

Public utilities have come under increasing scrutiny from European Community institutions in recent years. This article examines the impact of Community law and policy on the utility sector from three perspectives. It describes the basic principles of Community law which are applicable to the sector and suggests some reasons why utilities were neglected until the adoption of the Single Market exercise. It then examines the Commission's proposals to extend the Community rules on public procurement to the ‘excluded sector’, ie water, energy, telecommunications and transport. Finally, it describes the potential impact of the Commission's new ‘trans-European network’ proposals for this sector. The article argues that while it is not yet possible to talk of a coherent Community utility policy, some basic orientations are becoming apparent.