The Public Utilities Industry covers a broad portfolio of services that generally aim to serve the needs of people. There is no single classification or specialization for companies in the public utilities industry, but there are several sub-groups under which businesses under public utilities fall.
Public utility products and services can be offered by public entities such as the government and private companies. Simply speaking, when public utilities come to mind, this generally speaks about corporations that handle different sectors such as electricity, water, gas, transportation, and even telecommunications.
Companies in the public utility field tend to the essential needs of customers. Obviously, being involved in this field promises a steady stream of income in the long run. However, since this field of business is in high and constant demand among consumers, the public utilities field, in general, is heavily regulated and monitored by authorities in the government.
While companies in the field are highly sought after, and revenues are almost guaranteed to flow on a regular basis (even with government control), there are still a few public utility companies that rise above the rest.
Whether it’s a competitive management workforce or excellent marketing strategies (or a combination of both), some companies have been able to make their name known more than the rest.
Here are some of the companies in the public utilities field that have generated enough interest, attention, and income to be considered as one of the most capable players in the market as of date.
20. Waste Management
Waste Management Inc., better known as WM, is — as the name implies — a company that specializes in offering waste management and environmental services to its customers nationwide.
A huge presence in the North American market, Waste Management handles the garbage collection, waste hauling, and the eventual recycling of materials in the areas where WM is supported.
The services of WM are definitely essential in keeping the areas that the company covers to be consistently clean and free of hazardous and toxic agents that can potentially be harmful to people.
19. Enel SpA
The Italian electricity and gas company Enel S.p.A. has a significant presence in many countries all over the world, with particular attention being given to regions in Latin America and Europe.
Considered not only one of the largest power companies in the world but one of the largest businesses worldwide in general in terms of revenue, Enel’s efforts in the renewable energy industry make it not only a powerful player in the market but also an important one, especially with the millions of customers that rely on the company for their power sources.
18. Essential Utilities
Formerly known by the name Aqua America, Essential Utilities is a United-States-based utility company that mainly operates in the water and gas industries.
The parent company of Aqua America and Peoples Natural Gas, Essential Utilities provides a number of services, such as providing drinkable water to its customers and wastewater management as well.
Due to the position of the company as being heavily involved in the natural resources sector, Essential Utilities also carries with it a huge constant responsibility to make sure that it operates as flawlessly as possible in order to preserve the safety and quality of its services on a regular basis.
17. American Electric Power
American Electric Power, better known to many as simply AEP, is an electric utility company that is also one of the largest public utility companies in the United States in general. To date, AEP serves around 5 million customers from an estimated 11 states.
As the company name implies, AEP is one of the country’s largest suppliers of electricity — and with said title, the company is able to maintain its huge electricity reserve thanks to its 63,000 km electricity transmission system network that constantly regulates and controls the flow of supply from point A to point B.
16. Dominion Energy
Dominion Energy, commonly referred to by its shorter name Dominion, supplies a number of resources to its customers in several American states, such as power, energy, electricity, and even natural gas.
Able to assist and provide for consumers in over 18 states, Dominion Energy has divided its operations into five parts — each of which represents a resource that Dominion Energy distributes to its customers.
The company is also heavily involved in the political scene for both Democrat and Republican parties, having donated to several political candidates throughout the election seasons that have recently passed.
15. Exelon
Another company that is regarded as a leader in the public utilities sector, Exelon Corporation is one of the largest electric utility companies in the United States in terms of revenue; due to its size, it also acts as the largest electric utility in the nation that is regulated by governing agencies as well.
Exelon manages six different utility subsidiaries, namely, Atlantic City Electric, Baltimore Gas and Electric, Commonwealth Edison, Delmarva Power, PECO Energy Company, and Pepco.
14. AES Corporation
The United States-based utility and power company, AES Corporation, is one of the biggest and most influential power companies not only in the country but in the entire world.
Possessing power plants of its own, AES Corporation is able to produce its own electricity through its numerous generators and then distribute and allocate the same resource to its customers all over the world — around 15 countries, to be more specific.
Constantly improving its services by expanding on its current energy storage technologies, AES Corporation is one of the most consistent and better-performing companies in the industry.
13. American Water Works
American Water Works is a public utility company that, as the name suggests, specializes in offerings centered around water and wastewater management. Founded in the late 1800s, the company steadily grew to become one of the major water companies in the United States.
Similar to other public utility companies, American Water Works is regulated by the state. The company has a wide array of clients ranging from residential customers to the military.
12. Edison International
Founded more than a century ago, Edison International is one of the oldest public utility companies in the world. Distributing electric power and renewable energy, Edison International’s main areas of focus, as it expands its operations, is the maintenance and further development of its services in order to offer sustainable clean energy that is both efficient for its customers and has the least impact on the environment as well.
11. National Grid plc
The National Grid plc is a multinational gas and electricity-related utility company which is based in England. However, the main operations of the company are located in the United Kingdom and some areas in the United States. The company is known for its efforts to provide renewable energy to its customers and fair regulations to its employees. To date, National Grid plc is one of the largest utility companies owned by investors worldwide.
10. Southern Company
Southern Company is a holding company involved in the gas and electricity industries as its main public utilities operations. Southern Company is known to be the second largest utility company in the United States when it comes to the size of its customer base. Southern Company is generally known for its sheer size — it is also regarded as one of the largest providers of energy in the entire United States as well.
9. Comcast Corporation
Comcast Corporation, better known as simply Comcast is included in the list of the largest telecom and media companies in the world. In the broadcasting and cable television aspect, Comcast ranks among the largest worldwide as well in terms of revenue. Providing Internet and phone communication services (among many other offerings), Comcast is a respected figure in the public utilities industry to date.
8. Duke Energy
Duke Energy is a large-scale power holding company that focuses on making its resources as renewable, clean, and efficient as possible. Duke Energy also has operations that focus on natural gas management and distribution. Serving millions of customers and a workforce totaling to around more than 27,000 employees, the company continues to make its operations efficient and capable of handling its massive organization.
7. Électricité de France
Électricité de France, as the name hints, is a French-based public utilities company that mainly operates and manages electricity as its area of expertise. Abbreviated simply EDF, Électricité de France handles a variety of operations such as distribution, trading, transmission, and even the generation of power itself. A huge player in the industry, EDF strives to make its functions environmentally friendly, reducing its emission production to the lowest levels possible.
6. E.ON
E.ON is an electric public utility company based in Germany that also operates in several areas worldwide. The company mainly serves locations in Europe. But E.ON covers many countries all across the globe and millions of customers at that (around 48 million as of writing). E.ON is concerned primarily with the generation and distribution of power and gas.
5. Pacific Gas & Electric Company
The Pacific Gas & Electric Company, better known as simply PG&E, is a natural gas and electricity public utility company that offers its services to a huge bulk of the state of California, among many other nearby areas in the country. The company is primarily owned by investors, and to date, PG&E offers a variety of energy services in several sectors such as nuclear, solar, and combustion — among many other types.
4. Engie
Engie is a public utility company based in France that has operations in several departments as well. Some of these sectors include natural gas, renewable energy, electricity distribution and generation, and even energy transition. The company was previously known as GDF Suez, but in 2015, executives decided the change to Engie to reflect the company’s intentions to expand their international presence in the future.
3. Pinnacle West Capital Corporation
Pinnacle West Capital Corporation is a public utilities holding company that specializes in electric utilities. The company owns several large entities across the United States such as Arizona Public Service (also known as APS) which is the largest provider of electricity in the state of Arizona and Bright Canyon Energy.
Initially known as the Arizona Power Company, the business rebranded its name to Pinnacle West in order to further promote the growing expansion efforts of the company.
Besides its business operations, Pinnacle West is also spreading its influence on a positive note through various economic development projects and financial assistance programs that would benefit the population of its coverage areas.
The public utility currently serves millions of customers at present. Through the company’s stake in APS, Pinnacle West Capital Corporation owns the Palo Verde Generating Station which is the largest nuclear plant and the largest producer of carbon-free electricity in the country.
2. Verizon
Verizon Communications — better known as simply Verizon is one of the top players in the telecommunications industry. Behind the company’s current success is a history of breakups and other major business decisions that would eventually lead to the founding of Verizon as the telecom giant that it is known as nowadays.
Verizon was a product of the breaking up of the Bell System — a system of telecommunication companies that dominated the industry in the United States back then — in response to the government’s intentions to regulate competition in the market.
Since then, Verizon has expanded its operations to become an accomplished company of its own in the decades that have passed since then. To date, Verizon is considered the largest wireless carrier in the entire United States — in addition to this, Verizon is also one of the largest providers of landline telephone services in the country as well.
1. AT&T
AT&T is a household name that continues to dominate the telecommunications industry across several regions and countries worldwide. Starting off as the Bell Telephone Company, a company founded in the late 1800s by none other than Alexandar Graham Bell — also known as the inventor of the telephone — AT&T has had a long and rich history on its journey to becoming one of the top players in the market.
AT&T was also at the forefront of the historic breakup of the Bell System, which encouraged fairness in the telecom market. The Bell System’s breakup financially impacted AT&T, but the company stayed afloat thanks to several critical business decisions, such as the acquisition of Metromedia, a fellow media company at the time.
The company is currently the third-largest provider of telecom services in America and also the third-largest telecommunications business all over the world in terms of revenue. The company provides a variety of offerings, such as mobile telephone services, satellite television, fixed-line telephones, and Internet services.
