Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) relocated to Bitgarm Innovative City of Naju, Jeollamnam-do, last year, and now it’s accelerating efforts to translate into action its goals of creating new growth engines and reinvigorating the regional economy.
KEPCO is proactively striving to play a leading role in putting into practice the government’s call to normalize the operation of public entities.
KEPCO has unveiled a new vision containing five core values that will be needed for it to rise to a world-class energy company, committed to creating innovative values that will help it embark on the next 100 years, beyond the 116-year history of the Korean electricity industry. The vision signifies KEPCO’s determination to become a first mover to innovate itself and take the initiative in the future energy industry.
The public utility company successfully coped with the long-standing issue of building a power transmission line in Milayng, a crisis that had dogged KEPCO, in 2014. What’s more important, KEPCO made a feat of posting a profit for the first time in six years.
As part of efforts to reform its operation, KEPCO is now concentrating on ensuring financial soundness through reduction of debts. The company is redoubling efforts to advance the realizing of a self-rescue plan to reducing debts by 14 trillion won by 2017. To this end, KEPCO has established a corps charged with reforming its overall operation, which has two committees under its umbrella—the Debt Reduction Emergency Committee and the Culture Innovation Emergency Countermeasure Committee. Some 10 trillion won from disposing of KEPCO headquarters site in Samseong-dong, Seoul, to Hyundai Motor Group will be used to cut down on its debts.
“We will make sure our debt rate will not increase on the basis of the end of this year,” a KEPCO official said. “Thanks to its continued efforts to improve management efficiency and profit, we will see better business performances this year than last year.”
As opportunities to explore new markets, KEPCO is stepping on the gas to develop new and renewable energy and clean energy technologies to seize up responses to global climate change and environmental issues. The company is now building a sea-wind power complex on the Southwest Coast, while developing such technologies as a next-generation technology to covert low-heat coat, in less use, into electricity, hydrogen and compound gas.
KEPCO is striving to establish electricity system infrastructure through the convergence of the electricity industry and ICT, as well as smart grids. The company is also implementing a micro grid project to spread the use of energy storage systems (ESS) and change diesel-powered plants into clean energy plants.
With the relocation of its headquarters to Naju, KEPCO is now one of the largest companies in the Jeolla provincial area.
“KEPCO will take roots and lead balanced national development as one of the nation’s largest public entities through coexistence with the local community,” KEPCO President Cho Hwan-eik said.
During her tour to the Bitgaram Innovative City of Naju on April 1,President Park Geun-hye said: “Naju has been evolving with a new look as the innovative city, and KEPCO, the nation’s representative energy supplier, is striving to attract some 500 energy firms to create the so-called Energy Valley.”
There are many new value-added energy industries, such as energy renewable and storage industries, and the new energy industry is one of 24 state tasks the government plans to nurture, said Park, adding that it is a good idea for foreigners to come to Naju to take a look at all things about energy.
Currently, 13 public entities, including KEPCO, have been relocated to Naju, the joint innovative city between Gwanju and Jeollanam-do. Three more are to follow suit by next year.
KEPCO, along with other energy companies such as KEPCO KPS and KEPCO KDN, which moved into the innovative city, plans to invest 10 billion won into joint R&D projects among industry, academia and research circles to explore future promising industries, including new and renewable energies, microgrids and electric vehicles.
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