Tremolet, Sophie2012-08-132012-08-132002-06https://hdl.handle.net/10986/11347In 1997 Gabon awarded the first real concession in Africa, under a contract that introduced coverage targets for expanding service to previously unconnected rural areas. SEEG, the new concessionaire, offers both water and electricity service, with the electricity business cross-subsidizing the less developed water business. Five years on, the concessionaire has performed well in established service areas, often exceeding targets, but has made less progress in more isolated areas. This Note assesses lessons for the design of contracts with incentives for expanding service beyond the immediate circles of major urban centers-and on the potential role of multi-utilities.CC BY 3.0 IGORURAL SERVICES DELIVERYACCESSIBLE SERVICESPRIVATE ENTITIESCONCESSIONSPUBLIC UTILITY PRICINGRURAL WATER SUPPLYRURAL ELECTRIFICATIONCROSS-SUBSIDIESCONTRACT FORMULATIONMULTI-OPTION FACILITYACCOUNTINGBACKBONEBUSINESS MODELSCONCESSIONCONCESSION CONTRACTCONNECTIONCONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONCROSS-SUBSIDIZATIONDEBTDEVELOPING COUNTRIESECONOMIES OF SCALEELECTRICITYELECTRICITY GENERATIONELECTRICITY SALESELECTRICITY SECTORELECTRICITY SERVICESELECTRICITY SYSTEMSELECTRICITY TARIFFSFINANCIAL RESOURCESGENERATIONGENERATORSGOVERNMENT INVESTMENTSINFRASTRUCTURE SERVICESINNOVATIONSINTERNATIONAL FINANCEINVENTORYINVESTINGINVESTMENT PLANNINGLEGAL FRAMEWORKLOCAL MARKETSLOCAL WATERLOWER TARIFFSMAIN URBAN AREASMETERINGMUNICIPAL COMPANIESNATIONAL UTILITYNETWORKSPREPAYMENTPRIVATE COMPANIESPRIVATE INVESTMENTPRIVATE OPERATORPRIVATE OPERATORSPRIVATE PARTICIPATIONPRIVATE SECTORPRIVATE SECTOR PARTICIPATIONPUBLIC OFFERINGPUBLIC OWNERSHIPRESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERSRURAL COMMUNITIESSERVICE EXPANSIONSERVICE PROVISIONSERVICE QUALITYSERVICE STANDARDSSHAREHOLDERSSMALL BUSINESSSMALL TOWNSTARGETSTARIFF STRUCTURETECHNICAL ASSISTANCETELEPHONETRANSACTIONTRANSMISSIONURBAN AREASURBAN CENTERSUSESUTILITIESWATER CONNECTIONWATER COVERAGEWATER CUSTOMERSWATER SECTORWATER SERVICE RURAL SERVICES DELIVERYACCESSIBLE SERVICESPRIVATE ENTITIESCONCESSIONSPUBLIC UTILITY PRICINGRURAL WATER SUPPLYRURAL ELECTRIFICATIONCROSS-SUBSIDIESCONTRACT FORMULATIONMULTI-OPTION FACILITYWorld Bank10.1596/11347