EBR-successful technical co-operation between companies in Sweden and the influence of deregulation

In a small country such as Sweden, where the electricity distribution network is divided into many companies of different sizes, there is an obvious risk that different technical solutions and choice of material and methods will increase the costs. In order to avoid this, a voluntary co-operation between almost all of the utility companies in Sweden has been going on for more than 30 years under the name of EBR, "Rational Construction of Distribution Networks". The cooperation has, over the years, been extended from constructions for overhead lines, to later include underground constructions, cost estimates and calculations, material handling, safety rules, maintenance etc., until it today is a whole system for a rational distribution of electricity.