End of the oil glut—state regulation of energy

The idea of confronting several hundred managers, politicians, and academics with 20 or so energy experts and celebrities to determine whether supplying the industrial world with energy is fundamentally a matter for the private sector or the state, may seem at first like an affront to common sense. After all, conferences, including those convened under the auspices of distinguished foundations, usually do not have any executive powers; and considering the uneven quality of the presentations, I suspect that the proceedings of this particular assembly will only have a limited readership in those spacious rooms adjoining the corridors of power. However, for reasons discussed below, this conference was a useful exercise. Energy Policy in the Market Economy, arranged by the Institut für Wirtschafts- und Gesellschaftspolitik, and sponsored by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Bonn-Bad Godesberg, Germany, 29–30 May 1979.