"50% Loan for Safety Facility Improvement Costs at Aging Gas Stations... Up to 500 Million KRW Support Annually"

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Korea Energy Agency announced on the 12th that it will implement the "Long-term Use Petroleum Storage Facility Safety Management Loan Project" starting from the 18th to improve petroleum storage facilities such as old gas stations and petroleum dealerships.

As the years of use increase, petroleum storage facilities require continuous investment in safety facilities to ensure the stability of the facilities and equipment.

Gas stations and petroleum dealerships with insufficient investment capacity find it difficult to properly manage safety as investments in safety facilities and equipment are often deprioritized.

Accordingly, the agency has decided to newly implement a loan project that supports part of the investment amount for safety management improvements of aging gas stations at low interest rates. The purpose is to encourage voluntary expansion of safety management investments in the private sector.

This year's budget for the petroleum storage facility safety management loan project is 5.01 billion KRW. It supports up to 50% of the investment costs for petroleum storage facility hazard safety enhancements?including storage facilities, loading/unloading facilities, auxiliary facilities, electrical equipment, and fire prevention/disaster prevention equipment?up to a maximum of 300 million KRW per business operator annually.

However, if the business operator is a small or medium-sized enterprise or a small business owner, the support limit is expanded up to 500 million KRW annually to facilitate smooth fund utilization and promote investment.

Those who wish to receive loans for petroleum storage facility safety improvements can apply for loan recommendations through the agency's Energy Special Account Loan Project website.

After screening and approval by recommending organizations such as the Korea Petroleum Distribution Association, Korea Gas Station Association, and Korea National Oil Corporation, a recommendation letter will be issued, and the loan application must be submitted through the loan handling institution. The project may close early if the budget is fully used.

An agency official said, "We hope this will provide some support to the gas station industry, which is facing a severe management crisis due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic."

Detailed information about this year's Long-term Use Petroleum Storage Facility Safety Management Loan Project can be found in the notices section of the agency's Energy Special Account Loan Project website.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.