“More than a story of pipeline markets and regulation, this book also offers a rich study of how asset specificity, non-deployable capital, and high up-front capital costs affect market development, regulation, pricing, and entry. Makholm takes what would otherwise be a pretty unexceptional industry—pipeline transport—and makes it of interest to a broader audience, especially those concerned with the new institutional economics.”

Gary D. Libecap, University of California, Santa Barbara

How did different regulatory frameworks arise for gas pipelines that have largely similar infrastructures? And why are US gas pipelines the only successful example of a competitive infrastructure market based on Coasian bargaining? Since neoclassical theory is not able to provide adequate answers to these questions or optimal regulatory solutions, Jeff D. Makholm employs the New Institutional Economics, utilizing the work of Oliver E. Williamson to offer a convincing discussion of how regulatory frameworks have developed and possible implications for future regulatory design.

Hendrik Finger | Journal of Regulatory Economics

“Elegantly and concisely written, [The Political Economy of Pipelines] is in part an essay on economic theory, in part a contribution to comparative economic and business history, and in part a programmatic statement for industry reform. Business and economic historians will find it highly useful, especially in relation to the sections on economic theory and pipelines, which are lucid and insightful.”

Business History Review