Daesung Group chairman Younghoon David Kim, 61, made an international debut as leader of the World Energy Council, the world’s largest independent network of global energy leaders and practitioners.Kim was chosen as a co-chair of the WEC last December and took office on the last day of the World Energy Congress in Daegu that closed Thursday.It is the first time for a Korean to take the top post of a global energy body. The London-based WEC, formed in 1923, is one of the most influential independ

Industry Oct. 17, 2013

DAEGU ― Korea’s sustainability in the energy sector worsened this year from the previous one, affected by rising energy imports and falling energy affordability, according to the 2013 energy sustainability index, issued by the World Energy Council on Tuesday in its triennial World Energy Congress in Daegu. The 2013 Energy Sustainability Index, made by the council in partnership with Oliver Wyman, a global management consultancy, evaluated 129 countries in three areas of energy sustainability las

Industry Oct. 15, 2013

DAEGU ― Despite continued growth of renewable energy sources, including solar and wind power, fossil fuels like oil and gas are expected to remain the dominant global energy sources even in the future, according to a report by the World Energy Council.The WEC released the report Monday, the first day of the five-day World Energy Congress that kicked off in this Korea’s third-largest city on Sunday.There has been some speculation in the world’s energy industry that the demand for fossil fuels wil

Industry Oct. 14, 2013

DAEGU ― A top leader in the nation’s leading refinery GS Caltex stressed that managing power demand was a way to cope with energy issues and achieving a “sustainable” energy future. “Managing energy demand is the key to achieving contradictory goals ― securing a stable energy supply and the response to climate change,” said Hur Dong-soo, chairman of GS Caltrex, in the first opening session of the 22nd World Energy Congress in Daegu aimed at discussing solutions for a sustainable energy future. H

Oct. 14, 2013

The eyes of the global energy sector will be focused on the 22nd World Energy Congress in Daegu this week, where about 6,000 delegates will discuss energy issues related to sources ranging from oil and gas to nuclear and renewables.The triennial global gathering, held under the theme “Securing Tomorrow’s Energy Today,” is to gather some of the world’s most prominent energy ministers, industry CEOs, and researchers. Whereas the principal concern was once the price of oil, seen as the responsibili

Oct. 13, 2013

The World Energy Congress, the world’s biggest international event in the energy sector, will offer a unique opportunity for all stakeholder groups in the energy sector to meet and exchange visions, strategies and practices, during four days of intensive sessions, roundtables and exhibitions that begin today. More than 6,000 international energy leaders and decision-makers are scheduled to gather at the congress. They come from the public and private corporate sectors, government and academia, a

Oct. 13, 2013

Natural resource-deficient Korea has long been dependent on the government-led, supply-driven, cheap electricity policy as stability in power supply has been seen as a crucial pre-condition of economic development. “The energy policy worked well when the Korean economy was in a developing stage, but it started facing a limit from the 1990s when the economy became much bigger,” Korea Energy Economics Institute president Sonn Yang-hoon said.  The supply-driven energy policy pushed Korea to the top

Industry Oct. 13, 2013

The state-run Korea Gas Corp., better known as KOGAS, has contributed to the nation’s economic growth and the quality of life of Koreans by importing liquefied natural gas and supplying it to power generation plants, gas-utility companies and city gas companies nationwide since its foundation in 1983. The company has now grown to become the world’s biggest liquefied natural gas buyer, running a nationwide pipeline network spanning over 3,562km reaching end users and power stations around the cou

Industry Oct. 13, 2013

The global energy industry is fast changing with the shale gas revolution in North America and sharp increase in energy demand, particularly in Asia.But a top IEA official stresses that two major long-term challenges facing the world are energy poverty and environmental sustainability.In a written interview with The Korea Herald ahead of the opening of the 2013 World Energy Congress in Daegu, International Energy Agency executive director Maria van der Hoeven also advised natural resource-defici

Industry Oct. 13, 2013

 I would like to warmly welcome all participants to the 22nd WEC in Daegu, Korea. As host of the Congress, I take this opportunity to briefly introduce Korea Electric Power Corp.State-run KEPCO, Korea’s iconic power company, has driven the nation’s economic growth over its 115-year history. We do our very best at all times to provide a high quality power supply. Currently, we are accomplishing great feats abroad by winning a variety of energy projects, including a nuclear power plant constructio

Industry Oct. 13, 2013

The state-run Korea Southern Power Company, or KOSPO, one of the nation’s leading power generators, is carrying out an innovative thermal power project to build the world’s most efficient and greenest coal power plant by 2016.This is part of KOSPO’s ambitious Samcheok Green Power Plant (Complex) Project, which will increase power generation facilities, including renewable projects, up to 5,000 megawatts by 2020. “The thermal power plant will generate a total of 2,000 megawatts of electricity by

Industry Oct. 13, 2013

Established in April 2001, after a spinoff from Korea Electric Power Corp. as part of the Korean government’s restructuring of the industry, KOMIPO has achieved steady and remarkable growth, embracing challenges and proving excellence in power plant technology and management capacity. Establishing itself as a thermal power-specialized public company in Korea and beyond, KOMIPO now accounts for 10.1 percent of Korea’s electric power supply through seven business sites, including its Boryeong Ther

Industry Oct. 13, 2013