2Municipalisation, War, Tax and Nationalisation
Imperial Continental Gas Association in an Era of Turmoil, 1824–1987
Introduction
Utility companies are incessantly confronted with non-market forces. Privately owned multinational enterprises, in particular, have been affected by political uncertainties, as described in a recent history of global electrification.1 The assets located in host countries were sometimes given up without any compensation in the waves of municipalisation or nationalisation. Combinations of domestic laws in different countries also caused issues for these companies across multiple jurisdictions. In contrast, most of the enterprises did not give up their businesses even after their overseas business was ...
