Energy guzzler S. Korea dims lights
The fourth-largest consumer of crude oil is desperate to cut energy bill, ordering people to drive less and cutting fuel tax
SEOUL - In a desperate bid to save energy, the authorities in South Korea will be turning off some street lights, ordering motorists to drive less and asking cinemas to cancel midnight movie screenings.
The Hyundai Department Store has already been turning off all exterior lighting at its seven department stores after midnight since the start of the month. The lifts stop only at every other floor.
Another big retailer, Grand Department Store, has started switching off all lights after 10 pm at its seven stores from this week, as well as encouraging workers to turn off all computers and appliances at the end of the day.
Other measures, taken in response to soaring crude oil prices caused mainly by fears over a war in Iraq, include restrictions on the lighting of bridges and public monuments, the Korea Herald reported.
The problem is the nation's rising energy bill, which soared 47 per cent last month from a year earlier to US$3.3 billion (S$5.8 billion), causing the nation's trade surplus to shrink to US$48 million last month, its lowest in three years, according to the commerce ministry.
South Korea is the world's fourth-largest consumer of crude oil, which is all imported.
'These measures are inevitable,' said Mr Kim Young Joon, who manages 400 billion won (S$608 million) at Samsung Investment Trust Management in Seoul.
'There is hardly any other country like Korea that relies so heavily on oil imports to survive,' he told Bloomberg News.
Crude oil prices have risen because of a strike in Venezuela that cut oil exports and a possible war in Iraq that may disrupt supply from the Middle East.
Other recommendations to businesses from the authorities include asking shops to turn off showcase and neon lighting after midnight, and even a reduction of heating in department stores.
The measures introduced so far have been voluntary after the government issued a plea last week to companies to help the nation cut its massive energy bill. But the government is now getting tough with mandatory measures.
'We plan to implement from next week some mandatory measures to save energy, such as turning off some street lamps and limiting use of passenger cars,' an official at the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy told Reuters.
The official said that they would start by limiting the use of passenger cars by those working for state and other public organisations, but might include the public later. One out of 10 passenger cars would be banned from running on a given date.
The government is also trying to cut natural gas use by offering a 20 per cent price discount to users who cut consumption by 15 per cent from levels a year earlier.
Local television stations are also being urged to include energy conservation themes in their programmes.
Another measure unveiled yesterday to cut the energy bill for oil importers is a virtual halving of a tax on petroleum to eight won a litre from 14 won, from next Monday. |
