Electricity has been supplied to households every day of the year for as long as I can remember. It is a source the majority of us in this day and age cannot manage to be without. The attempt at regulating price in the electricity industry is a troublesome one where the objective is to not only try to minimise the cost to consumers, but also to create a rate structure that will entice the power company to remain within the industry/competiton. The distribution of electricity remains regulated to ensure reliable service to all consumers and to set distribution rates based on cost and performance whilst trying to aim it at market prices.
Today we are looking at companies who supply elctricity to households within our economy. Part (a) of our assignment requires us to draw a budget line for an average household labeling the intercepts and the slope of the budget line. Please refer to the following diagram.
The above diagram illustrates that at point ‘A’ the average household consumes majority of all other goods but little electricity. At point ‘B’ the household begins to use a fair amount or more electricity but no other good
that there is an increase in the price of electricity. The new budget line which represents the average household takes a move inward therefore making it steeper. There is a price effect where as the price for electricity increases, the usage of electricity decreases. We can begin to see that the average household will be neither better off nor worse off after the change. Part (c) asks to now consider a household with the same income as the average household, but with preferences that favour more electricity consumption than the average housdehold.