Conflict of Interest in Regulatory Governance with a Focus on the Energy Sector

Managing conflicts of interest and identifying their situations depend on the legal and regulatory framework, as well as each country’s definition of the issue. Proper management and resolution of these situations provide the basis for preventing corruption and public distrust. For example, each country's energy sector and its natural monopoly create the context for the emergence of the aforementioned challenges. Solving this challenge becomes more complex when new actors enter the regulatory arena. It is necessary to consider all dimensions of an issue and the stakeholders and actors in the energy sector based on specific logic, such as regulatory governance. Based on this logic, setting regulations and creating transparent procedures in the interactions of actors, as well as identifying conflicts of interest and providing solutions if situations arise, are among the functions of this type of governance. Evaluating the impact of regulations is one of the principal measures of regulatory governance. Accordingly, policymakers and legislators assess the effectiveness of laws by continuously reviewing and updating laws related to conflicts of interest management. If they are ineffective, they amend them or enact more effective laws.