Within the recent debate on liberalization of local public services, the paper investigates the cost properties of a sample of Italian public utilities providing in combination gas, water and electricity. The estimates from a Composite Cost Function econometric model (Pulley and Braunstein,...

In the last decade, the European Commission promoted a new regulatory framework aiming at a gradual liberalization of the energy markets. The introduction of competition among generators implies the need to separate generation from transmission and distribution activities. However, if savings...

In the paper we study the cost structure of a sample of Italian utility providing in combination gas, water and electricity. The estimates from a Composite cost function model (Pulley e Braunstein, 1992) highlight that costs are lower when multi-utility operate in high-density areas and when...

<i> Il trasporto pubblico locale in Italia: variabili esplicative dei divari di costo tra le imprese </i> (di Giovanni Fraquelli, Massimiliano Piacenza, Graziano Abrate) - ABSTRACT: The aim of the present study is to provide fresh evidence about the characteristics of cost structure of public transit...

This article investigates the determinants of board compensation for a sample of Italian state owned enterprises (SOEs). To that purpose, we use newly collected panel data of 106 local public utilities observed from 1994 through 2004, which includes detailed information on the boards of...

A<sc>brate</sc> G., E<sc>rbetta</sc> F., F<sc>raquelli</sc> G. and V<sc>annoni</sc> D. The costs of disposal and recycling: an application to Italian municipal solid waste services, <italic>Regional Studies</italic>. The paper investigates the costs of waste disposal and recycling services by using a well-behaved <italic>Composite</italic> cost function model. The...

The increasing problems of pollution and traffic congestion require the definition of a model of sustainable mobility -- in particular, in large, urban areas. An indirect control on these negative externalities associated with private transport may be pursued by means of policies aimed at...

In this paper we investigate the economic rationality of the bed downsizing process, characterising the hospital industry worldwide in the last decades, as a measure to control public health care expenditure. Considering a sample of Italian hospitals, we provide fresh evidence on the factor...