Opposition Controlled National Assembly Refusing to Fund Exploration of Reported Oil Field Off the Coast of Korea
This is probably another reason why the Yoon administration should not have made this possible find of oil of the coast of Korea public because the opposition controlled National Assembly doesn’t want to give them credit:
The government’s ambitious project to excavate oil and gas in the East Sea is expected to face challenges in securing a budget from the National Assembly, according to sources, Sunday.
While the government aims to allocate a budget of 100 billion won ($72.4 million) next year for initial drilling, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is putting on the brakes, first demanding the transparent disclosure of relevant information regarding the project.
According to the government, a budget of 100 billion won is needed for drilling one prospective structure. Its goal is to commence initial exploratory deepwater drilling within the first half of the 2025, following sequential exploratory drilling of the four remaining prospective structures.
For next year, following the usual practice, the government plans to cover approximately 50 percent of the total project cost, or 50 billion won, through the Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC). The remaining 50 percent will be provided as government loans to KNOC.
Korea Times
Here is the reason the opposition is giving:
“The trade ministry and the KNOC have refused to submit key documents, including those related to the appropriateness of Act-Geo’s selection, the bidding process, project feasibility evaluation results, the list of domestic and international advisory panels, meeting minutes and final reports,” the lawmakers said.
They stated that a review of relevant documents submitted by the government is needed before determining the appropriateness of the proposed budget.
The ruling People Power Party refuted the claims, saying the DPK is objecting for political purposes
It is pretty clear that the opposition will keep delaying funding for this oil find just to ensure the Yoon administration doesn’t get credit for it.
