UK electricity privatization (1989-1990)
Margaret Thatcher's government passed the Electricity Act 1989, splitting the state-owned Central Electricity Generating Board into competing generators and regional distribution companies.
Power prices fell in real terms and supply reliability improved through the 1990s.
Unbundling generation, transmission, and distribution became the template for power reforms worldwide, including India's 2003 Act.
Delhi's 2002 privatization copied the same logic: break a loss-making monopoly into separate businesses and let private operators chase efficiency.
