The South Korean government is making headlines with claims of potentially substantial oil and natural gas reserves discovered off its southeastern coast, near Pohang's Yeongil Bay. If confirmed, this discovery could elevate Korea’s status as an oil-producing nation. However, transitioning from finding these reserves to harnessing them is a complex journey. Here, we address the key questions surrounding this development.   What is the basis of the government's claim? In February 2023,

South Korea maintains a steady supply of liquefied natural gas and is actively preparing for potential contingencies amid Middle East geopolitical uncertainties, the industry ministry said Tuesday. "There have been concerns over the supply of gas following the Israel-Hamas incident amid the lingering war between Russia and Ukraine, but the supply currently remains stable," Director-General for Resource Policy Ryu Peob-min said during a meeting with industry officials. "However, in

The following is the text version of the address given by Justin Trudeau to South Korea’s National Assembly on Wednesday, transcribed and copyedited by The Korea Herald. -- Ed. Hello everyone. Annyeonghaseyo (“Hello” in Korean). Gamsahabnida (“Thank you”). I want to begin by thanking the speaker of the National Assembly, Kim Jin-pyo, and the secretary general of the National Assembly, Lee Kwang-jae, for their warm welcome. All esteemed members, it is an honor for me

Electricity rates and gas prices in South Korea will increase by 5.3 percent from Tuesday, to ease the financial burden of cash-strapped state-run energy companies. The electricity rate will go up by 8 won ($0.006) per kilowatt-hour and the gas rate by 1.04 won per megajoule, the government announced Monday. The hiked rates take effect from Tuesday, but will not be applied retroactively. This means that a four-person household that uses an average amount of electricity and gas will have to pay

The government and the ruling People Power Party will hold a consultative meeting this week to decide on a hike in electricity and gas rates for the second quarter, officials said Sunday. The meeting will be held Monday to decide on the extent of an increase in electricity rates, which has been postponed for more than a month, according to officials from the ruling party. The government and the ruling party "tentatively" decided to raise the electricity rates by 8 won ($0.01) per kilow

Korea Gas Corp., a state-owned enterprise that effectively monopolizes the import of liquefied natural gas, is said to have raised the annual salary of its executives by 30 percent on average last year despite its mounting debt. The average annual salary of its board members was 171.48 million won ($128,545) in 2022, according to ALIO, a government system that provides management information on public institutions including state-owned enterprises. The amount was up 30.1 percent from 131.79 mill

It is indisputable that raising electricity and gas fees is the only solution in the current situation to prevent majority state-owned public enterprises Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and Korea Gas Corp. (KOGAS) from going bankrupt. Their losses have snowballed because they failed to reflect sharp international energy price increases in their fees. KEPCO suffered an operating loss of 32.65 trillion won ($24.8 billion) last year alone. It has to pay 3.8 billion won each day in interest payme

President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday the government would freeze the price of public utilities, at least for the first half of the year, in a bid to ease the growing financial burden on the public following outcry over soaring heating bills and high inflation. At a meeting of economic ministers, Yoon requested the central government freeze public utility bills -- road, railroad and postal fees -- for the first half of this year. He also asked provincial governments to cooperate in stabilizing

      The government on Friday decided to raise the electricity rate in the first quarter of 2023 by 13.1 won per kilowatt hour, the largest on-quarter hike ever carried out. This means that four people household that uses around 307 kilowatt hours will have to pay around 4,022 won more per month on average. “From the second quarter on, we plan to decide whether or not to increase rates further by comprehensively reviewing global energy prices, inflation, domestic economic s

In 1962 Korea needed markets in new countries for its nascent strategy of export-oriented industrialization. Diplomatic relations were the first step in that direction. Fifteen Latin American and Caribbean countries benefited from this drive, including mine, the Dominican Republic. Exporting to my region has contributed to Korea becoming the world’s sixth largest exporter and the 10th largest economy. It is now a leading source of quality products at affordable prices. Coherence is the o

A family of four in South Korea will see electricity bills rise as much as 2,000 won ($1.69) per month in 2022 as Korea Electric Power Corp. decided to raise utility prices 5.6 percent to mitigate its soaring debt accumulated due in part to its aggressive pursuit of renewable energy. According to NH Investment & Securities on Tuesday, the state-run utility will charge 11.8 won more per kilowatt-hour next year, which would allow the company to save costs worth 3 trillion won annually. Des

Korea Gas Corp. is undergoing a paradigm shift from a fossil fuel resource developer to a hydrogen-based eco-friendly company by pushing forward its hydrogen as well as natural gas businesses. Established in 1983 with a mission for safe and stable supply of natural gas, KOGAS owns 74 storage tanks with a total capacity of 11.56 million kiloliters at five production sites in Pyeongtaek, Incheon, Tongyeong, Samcheok and Jeju; 4,945 kilometers of natural gas pipelines nationwide; and 413 supply ma

Korea Gas Corp. was born in the aftermath of the global oil crises of the 1970s, with a mission to lead a fuel transition to natural gas. Nearly four decades later, the company is being asked to step up, as South Korea plans another grand energy transition to hydrogen. “In the aftermath of the global oil crisis, Korea decided to switch its national fuel to natural gas and formed Kogas (in 1983). Since then, Kogas led the natural gas transition and experienced every step along the way,&

President Moon Jae-in on Monday attended a christening ceremony for a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility set to head to Mozambique, saying the platform will expand energy cooperation between the two nations. The christening ceremony of the Coral-Sul floating facility came about four years after Samsung Heavy Industries Co., a major Korean shipyard, won a $2.5 billion deal to build the offshore facility. Moon said the floating LNG facility will become a symbol of friendly cooperati

As part of its long-term vision to shift to eco-friendly energy, Korea Gas Corp. plans to push ahead with four new businesses using liquefied natural gas. LNG is considered an eco-friendly fuel as it emits 100 percent less sulfur oxides and dust compared to existing fuels for ships, 20 percent less carbon dioxide and up to 99 percent less fine dust. As the International Maritime Organization limited the sulfur content of ships’ fuel oil to 0.5 percent, global demand for LNG-powered ships