STOCKS | South Korea Plans Public Energy and Transport Mergers to Cut Costs

South Korea will merge a series of state-owned energy and transport companies as part of a broader public institution reform. According to Sina Finance, the overhaul is aimed at meeting rising electricity demand, lowering operating costs, and strengthening national competitiveness. South Korean Vice Minister of Economy and Finance Heo Jang said at a news conference that Korea National Oil Corp. and Korea Gas Corp. will be merged, while five utility divisions under Korea Electric Power Corp. will also be consolidated. Korea Coal Corp., which has closed all of its mines, will be liquidated, and four local port authorities will be merged. The government said the restructuring is intended to combine institutions with similar functions, merge subsidiaries and smaller entities, and help the country better meet strong demand from the artificial intelligence and semiconductor industries. According to South Korean officials, the plan will affect 109 public institutions, or about 20% of the total. "The government has drawn up a plan to redesign the functions and roles of public institutions by streamlining overlapping and duplicate functions, cutting non-core activities, and better integrating dispersed work so they can focus on core responsibilities," Heo said.