Accountability of water utilities on water price submissions

Our researchers

• Edward Tello Melendez

Overview

This study focuses on a specific accountability demand, namely, water price submissions. The purpose is to investigate how the introduction of a customer-focused accountability framework, first iteration of the PREMO water pricing framework, changed existing accountability dynamics in the Victorian water utilities sector.

It is widely accepted that the ‘listen-to-the-customer’ philosophy is necessary for organisations’ survival (Cäker, 2007). Thus, there is a growing emphasis for customer-focused accountability regimes. This study focuses on the implementation of the first iteration of the PREMO water pricing framework in Victoria (Australia), which changed the accountability dynamics between water utilities and accountees – in particular, water customers.

Takeaways for stakeholders

Due to the growing tendency of the ‘listen-to-the-customer’ philosophy, policy makers might be interested in this study.

This study will also contribute to the literature on the accountability of water utilities as it explores a customer-focused accountability regime. Furthermore, the learnings from the implementation of the first iteration of the PREMO framework are relevant to the social and environmental accounting research community because this customer-focused accountability empowers customers to have more control over what might otherwise be considered a monopolistic context.