| Abstract: | This study utilizes linear programming and regression for identifying distributors of Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) power that deviate from the normal efficiency levels and for listing distributor attributes that affect these efficiencies. The conclusions are: (1) most TVA distributors are reasonably efficient; however, they appear to be more efficient with respect to technical and scale measures than with respect to cost and allocation measures; (2) TVA distributors tend to over use labor and capital, but utilize purchased wholesale power appropriately; (3) TVA distributors display increasing, decreasing and constant returns to scale, depending on observation; and (4) firm attributes that impact efficiencies the most are: distribution of utilities other than electricity, state location, service area size, the relative amount of power distributed to small customers, the ratio of small customers to large customers and the total amount of electrical energy distributed. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
