The eighth annual report, The Big Leap: Utilities Global Survey 2006, presents the views of 116 senior executives from leading utilities companies in 43 countries.

Natural gas was ranked alongside coal as the fuel expected to make the biggest contribution to meeting energy demand growth over the next five years. But respondents predicted a big push to develop clean coal technologies.

Changes expected in the Australian market are little short of revolutionary, according to PwC resources leader Derek Kidley.

"The dash for gas will drive major change, while the required $30 billion in new asset investment will likely transform the industry," he said.

"The establishment of a new single, national Australian Energy Regulator is an overdue, but nonetheless revolutionary, step in the right direction and an opportunity to come to grips with the problems of the industry."

Encouraging renewable energy and cutting greenhouse gas emissions are two other areas of concern to emerge in this year's survey.

Customer pressure was cited as a very significant force for change though utilities companies are increasingly looking to technological innovation to deliver efficiencies and respond to the pincer of future demand challenges and environmental concerns.

An emissions trading regime along the lines of what has been introduced in Europe is expected to be introduced into other regions. Just over half of European respondents said the emissions trading scheme had worked as expected.

Half of the respondents in the Americas and Europe and 44% of all respondents expect nuclear capacity to increase in their region as a result of concerns about climate change.