Korea National Oil Corporation (KNOC) said on the 2nd that it will push innovation across its organization and personnel to regain trust and become a public institution that meets public expectations.
Since President Son Joo-seok took office on the 5th on the previous month, the corporation has been seeking sweeping internal changes. Choi Moon-kyu, head of the Planning and Finance Division, who served as acting president after President Kim Dong-seop stepped down midterm in Nov. last year, will resign on the 3rd. Using this as a turning point, the corporation plans to reshuffle top management and carry out early retirement and personnel reassignments for senior positions.
Behind this personnel shake-up is the government's harsh rebuke over the Blue Whale project, a deepwater gas field development in the East Sea. Minister Kim Jung-kwan of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources strongly criticized at a Jan. 12 briefing by the corporation that, despite procedural shortcomings in the Blue Whale project, those involved received promotions and performance bonuses.
The Minister said, "The issue is not that the Blue Whale drilling results were poor, but that, in a situation where many doubts were being raised about the process itself, it was surprising that the process received a top grade and led to promotions," adding, "It is hard to accept that such evaluations were made without gaining public trust."
The Minister also had urged the corporation over its plan to finalize an organizational reform plan by May, saying, "Do not waste time until May; move immediately to reform."
Accordingly, the corporation will derive reform measures through a self-diagnosis and expert consulting, and carry out a sweeping organizational restructuring in line with them.
President Son Joo-seok said, "We will prepare a reform plan so the corporation can be reborn as a field-centered organization that can focus on the core value of its work," adding, "We plan to produce results within the second quarter and put them into action."