Hong Suk-woo secured support as a “man with no enemies” at the helm of the two state-run agencies but now faces hurdles surrounding knotty issues such as power supplies, fuel prices and co-prosperity between large and small firms.

Hong, a former chief of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency and the Small & Medium Business Administration, was sworn in as Knowledge Economy Minister on Thursday.

The swift approval of Hong’s nomination following a parliamentary hearing on Tuesday underlines a mountain of challenges that engulfed his predecessor Choi Joong-kyung.

Choi offered to step down last month in the aftermath of blackouts that swept across Korea in mid-September amid an unseasonable heat wave.

Criticism mounted against the ministry and the country’s sole electricity provider, the Korea Electric Power Corporation, over their tardy responses and failure to inform citizens in advance.

Faced with upcoming demand spikes during the winter months and averting the recurrence of blackouts, the ministry laid out a set of measures including mandatory usage cuts for large firms and maximum temperature limits for commercial buildings.

But Knowledge Economy Vice Minister Kim Jung-gwan said early this month his agency is struggling to maintain sufficient reserves of 4 million kilowatts, forecasting rock-bottom levels between the second and third weeks of January.

“I’ll make sure the ministry prevents any electricity crunch without causing damage on people’s lives,” Hong told the National Assembly on Tuesday.

Another big issue is petrol prices.

The ministry has been caught up in a standoff with local refiners and gas station owners as it moves to set up “alternative” gas stations to supply cheaper petroleum products to rein in runaway fuel prices.

Choi has been striving to break the dominance of the country’s four refiners and stimulate competition, while refiners and vendors vent fury at his push, criticizing him for being “anti-market.”

Meanwhile, industry watchers will be keen on Hong’s policy for mutual growth between large corporations and their smaller partners. He is a SME expert well-known for his field management and ability to integrate his organization.

On his hectic first day, he departed for the airport immediately after his inaugural ceremony at the presidential office to accompany President Lee Myung-bak on a five-day visit to the Philippines and an ASEAN summit.

By Shin Hyon-hee
(heeshin@heraldcorp.com)