4 - Corporate Restructuring Reform

Summary

Examines the reform of Central Asia’s energy utilities in the light of the principles of corporatization, unbundling and privatization defined in the reform textbook literature and advocated by development banks. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan restructured, or are in the process of restructuring, their national energy (mainly electricity) utilities. Although restructuring has, at least to some extent, improved payment collection rates, it has generally failed to transform the utilities into financially viable entities. Chapter 4 therefore discusses Central Asia’s corporate reform process, and examines the institutional and geopolitical obstacles that have stalled this process. As illustrated by the discontinuation of the restructuring of the Kyrgyz gas utility following its purchase by the Russian state-owned company Gazprom, strategic investment in energy utilities can end reform initiatives. The analysis demonstrates that, in regions of high geopolitical importance, privatization can be an obstacle to reform rather than a force for good.