In a management assessment about corporations associated with the government, the Korea Energy Management Corporation (KEMCO, www.kemco.or.kr) has ranked first for two consecutive years. The Corporation is assessed to take root as an innovation spearheading institution.
Notably, KEMCO was worth noticing as a frontrunner of management innovation as the Corporation ranked first among 87 corporations under the influence of the government in the year 2005. About such fruit, President Lee Ki-sub of KEMCO said in a written interview with The Korea IT Times that he believes it is fruit attained thanks to diverse and continuous innovation activity propulsion with companies such as BSC, SixSigma and Innovation Mileage and proactive participation of all executives as well as employees.
KEMCO has been doing its best to allow innovation to settle as an organizational culture. The Corporation is servicing an e-civil service dealing system and accomplished customer satisfaction and affairs efficiency improvement at the same time by setting SixSigma as the core means of its management.
As its first innovation strategy is finished as of the year 2006, it is said that KEMCO is establishing the second stage management innovation composite propulsion plan called Inno-Work KEMCO, according to Lee.
From securing energy to demand management
By strengthening the business propulsion system through BSC, an effective management tool, Lee explained: "The Corporation has accomplished its goal targeted at the beginning of the year 2006 in the 28 entire business fields." He added that KEMCO will drive forward energy saving projects this year too, placing emphasis on energy efficiency improvement of the entire part such as industry, transport, building and machinery and tools.
For instance, KEMCO induced voluntary agreement participation from the industrial world, entering into an agreement with 1,353 business ground till the year 2006 in the field of Industry.
In the field of transport, KEMCO plans to enforce average energy consumption efficiency institution for the purpose of energy efficiency improvement of transport part. In the field of building, Lee said that the corporation will induce energy saving model building when building newly plus activating building energy efficiency grade certification institution and supporting technology as well as incentive about great energy consuming buildings through building voluntary agreements.
Fourthly in the field of appliances, KEMCO is operating three institutions right now in efficiency management such as energy consumption efficiency indication institution and the atmosphere electric power reduction program, according to Lee.
Relative importance of new renewable energy; from 2.5% in 2006 to 5% in the forthcoming 2011
As regarding new renewable energy technology development project, president Lee explained: "Our country is supplying 2.13% of the primary energy with new renewable energy though this figure is not yet sufficient in comparison with advanced countries, that is, France 6.3%, the USA 4.5%, Germany 4.3%, and Japan 3.4%."
He said that the relative importance of new renewable energy supply among the primary energy will be expanded from 2.5% in 2006 to 5% in the forthcoming 2011.
Regarding the present condition of new renewable energy development at home, Lee introduces that three preponderance fields such as hydrogen and fuel cells, sunlight and wind force are being invested intensively.
Compared with other advanced countries, the domestic technology level is yet insufficient, but to raise technology level related institutions have strategic technology development under way by means of The Second New Renewable Energy Technology Development as well as Propagation Basic Plan, he said.
A budget for technology development is on the rise yearly with 32.9 billion won (US$35.1 million) in 2003, 58.8 billion won (US$62.7 million) in 2004, 79.4 billion won (US$84.6 million) in 2005, 115.8 billion won (US$123.4 million) in 2006, and 120.9 billion won (US$128.9 million) in 2007.
Sunlight, wind force and fuel cell fields have not reached to their commercial propagation stage yet with domestic technology, but in recent years market demand is rapidly on the increase through bold governmental investment and corporate R&D as well as facility investment are enlarging, Lee said.
With regard to the 100,000 sunlight housing propagation project, the president introduced: "Since embarking in earnest from 2004, this project has completed 7,100 households and sunlight facility propagation over 10,000kW till last year," adding that the corporation is scheduled to propagate 100,000 housing till 2012, which generate electricity at their own house by the sunlight. KEMCO aims to propagate 8,000 houses this year.
In connection with new renewable energy's propulsion outlook in the coming years, Lee comments: "In the case of new renewable energy including sunbeams, initial investment expenses are high, but KEMCO plans to enlarge propagation market through pan-national awareness boost in the light of the fact that such new renewable energy can serve as the core way for solving environment problem and against fossil energy exhaustion in a climate change agreement era."
Energy's rational use; important factor to decide sustainable development
Last but not least, Lee said that KEMCO is providing customers with electronic civil appeal service in order to maximize customer satisfaction degree. Accordingly, the Corporation has actualized electronic civil appeal system to the entire affairs for the first time among public institutions.
As in recent years, the system is spreading to a number of public institutions. KEMCO is becoming an object of benchmarking from public institutions, Lee notes.
It is true that it tends to neglect energy saving, the president concedes, as life level improves. However, he emphasizes that energy's efficient use is indispensable since a greenhouse gas discharge reduction pressure swells globally in relation to continuing high oil circumstance and climate change agreement.
He gave attention to the fact that advanced countries also such as the USA or EU which didn't feel any difficulties in securing and supplying energy in the meanwhile, are changing energy policy's weight center from securing energy to energy's efficient use and energy consumption saving.
Lee further said that it is not too much to say no matter how frequently we may stress energy's efficient use for a country which depends on importing 97% of energy like Korea.
Man should recognize that energy's rational use in an era of high oil price as well as climate change agreement is an important factor which can decide on the existence of the nation and the mankind and furthermore on sustainable development, he concluded.
