Short answers, pulled from the story.
France operated a nationwide government-owned vertically integrated company in the 1950s. This system included state-run utility structures similar to those maintained by Italy, Greece, and the Republic of Ireland during that decade.
Chile became a pioneer in deregulation in the early 1980s with a law passed in 1982 codifying changes started in 1979. Joskow and Schmalensee published Markets for Power: An Analysis of Electrical Utility Deregulation in 1983 to popularize this new market approach.
PJM Interconnection applies nodal pricing throughout its service territory covering Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia. These states fall under the jurisdiction of this specific Independent System Operator.
Electricity retailers enter hedge contracts with generators to protect against price volatility and uncertain consumption volumes. Simple fixed price forward contracts for physical delivery represent one common form used to manage these risks.
The California electricity crisis occurred during 2000/2001 due to flawed retail competition regulation. Incumbent retailers faced high spot prices without the ability to hedge against these costs during that period.