[Edaily Reporter Kim Hyung-wook ] The selection process for the next presidents of major state-owned enterprises, including KoreaElectricPower Corporation (KEPCO), KoreaGasCorporation (KOGAS), and Korea South-East Power, has begun in earnest. With the government set to finalize plans for the reorganization and restructuring of five power generation state-owned enterprises this coming July, observers suggest that these appointments will go beyond mere leadership changes and serve as the first step in gauging the new administration’s direction for reforming energy state-owned enterprises.

According to the energy industry on the 28th, KEPCO formed an Executive Nomination Committee in mid-June to appoint a new president and has begun preparations for the open recruitment process. This is part of the succession process following the expiration of current President Kim Dong-cheol’s three-year statutory term on September 19.

KOGAS is also in the final stages of its process to appoint a new president. After opening the application process last April, the company is currently screening candidates through deliberations by the Ministry of Finance and Economy’s Public Institution Management Committee, and the new president is expected to be confirmed as early as July. KOGAS, whose current President Choi Yeon-hye’s statutory term ended late last year, had already conducted a recruitment process for a new president at the end of last year; however, the government concluded that there were “no suitable candidates,” prompting the company to reopen the recruitment process.

Namdong Power Generation, which has been without a president since the resignation of former President Kang Ki-yoon, is also in the midst of the selection process. After accepting applications from candidates for the new president from the 8th to the 16th, the company will conduct interviews early next month.

The most notable feature of this round of appointments is that figures from political circles are once again being mentioned as leading candidates. For the position of KEPCO’s new president, Gwangju Mayor Kang Ki-jeong—who did not run in the June 3 local elections—is being mentioned alongside former Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power President Jeong Jae-hoon and current Second Vice Minister of Climate, Energy, and Environment Lee Ho-hyun, among other former bureaucrats.

There is also talk that former National Assembly member Hong Ui-rak is a strong contender for the new presidency of the Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS). Former Assemblyman Hong, who is based in the Daegu region where KOGAS is headquartered, served in the 19th and 20th National Assemblies and worked on former Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum’s campaign for Daegu mayor during the June 3 local elections.

While the heads of major state-run energy corporations have traditionally been appointed from among bureaucrats or industry professionals, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration has seen an increase in appointments of figures with political backgrounds.

Kim Dong-cheol, the current president of KEPCO, is a four-term former lawmaker, and Choi Yeon-hye, the current president of KOGAS, also served as a lawmaker in the 20th National Assembly. Since adjustments to electricity and gas rates are subject to government control, political acumen—including the ability to coordinate with the government and the National Assembly—is considered a crucial qualification alongside professional expertise.

In particular, industry attention is focused on the selection of the president of Namdong Power Generation. The open recruitment for the new president of Namdong Power Generation is scheduled to take place just before the merger of the five state-run power generation companies (Namdong, Nambu, DONGSUH, Seobu, and Jungbu Power Generation), and it is highly likely that the president appointed this time will directly lead the merger process.

Industry observers speculate that the new president of Namdong Power Generation will not only be the “last president” of the company but could also emerge as the leading candidate in the upcoming selection process for the inaugural president of the merged power generation company. Since the presidents of the other four power generation companies were appointed by the previous administration and have terms remaining until September or October of next year, the new president—as the only head of a state-run power generation company appointed by the current administration—is expected to hold an advantageous position in the competition.

Professor Im Won-hyuk of the Graduate School of International Policy at the Korea Development Institute (KDI) said, “It appears the government has determined that it is inappropriate to leave the CEO positions of major power generation companies vacant indefinitely, separate from the integration of the five power generation companies,” adding, “Realistically, the new CEO of Namdong Power Generation will likely have an advantage in the upcoming open recruitment process for the CEO of the merged power generation company.”