Climate Ministry plans to launch new consolidated energy firm next year

The government said Friday it plans to launch a new consolidated power generation company in October next year as part of its initiative to streamline state-run businesses and improve their efficiency.

On Thursday, the Korean government announced plans to merge and restructure five state-run power generators — Korea South-East Power, Korea Midland Power, Korea Western Power, Korea Southern Power and Korea East-West Power — into a single entity.

The initiative was part of the government's push to reduce the total number of state-run firms from 524 to 415.

According to the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, the consolidated entity will have four divisions covering renewable energy, energy transition, safety technology and planning and management.

The headquarters will have 1,800 employees, 600 fewer than the combined headquarters work force of the five existing companies. Its location has yet to be decided.

The government also vowed to seek measures to exempt the merger from a review by the Fair Trade Commission.

The Climate Ministry, meanwhile, said a feasibility study found that consolidating the firms would be the best option for facilitating energy transition and improving management efficiency.

The new company is expected to become the world's 14th-largest power generator, with a generation capacity of 53 gigawatts, according to the ministry. Excluding Chinese companies, it will rank eighth globally.

The new entity will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Korea Electric Power (Kepco), same as the five existing power generators.

Yonhap