Ministry of Industry Establishes 'Energy Vice Minister' for 3-Vice Minister System... Major High-Level Personnel Changes Expected

Reborn as a 'Giant Ministry' with a Three-Vice-Minister System... "Proactive Response to Carbon Neutrality"
Two New Offices Established Including the Electric Power Innovation Policy Office and Hydrogen Economy Policy Office
At Least Two Director-Level Personnel Changes in August if Second Vice Minister Promoted Internally... Chain Personnel Changes Expected Among Department Heads

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] On the 9th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy will establish a dedicated Vice Minister for Energy, expanding related organizations. The plan is to proactively respond to carbon neutrality by promoting eco-friendly energy transition and fostering new energy industries through strengthened policy capabilities. Following the Vice Minister and the Head of Trade Negotiations (Vice Minister level), the Ministry will be reborn as a 'giant ministry' with a three-Vice Minister system through the establishment of this new Energy Vice Minister position.

The Ministry announced that the "Partial Amendment to the Organization of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Its Affiliated Agencies," which mainly includes the reorganization of the energy sector, was approved at the Cabinet meeting on the 3rd and will be implemented on the 9th.

Minister Moon Seungwook of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "Through the establishment of the new Energy Vice Minister and the reinforcement of related organizations and personnel, we will accelerate the innovation of the energy system to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050," adding, "We will actively strive to create new growth engines and jobs for our economy, such as renewable energy and hydrogen."

This reorganization in the energy sector includes the establishment of a dedicated Energy Vice Minister (2nd Vice Minister) newly created under the revised Government Organization Act, two bureaus (Power Innovation Policy Bureau and Hydrogen Economy Policy Bureau), and four divisions (Power System Innovation Division, Renewable Energy Distribution Division, Hydrogen Industry Division, Nuclear Power Region Cooperation Division), along with the addition of 27 personnel. Accordingly, the energy organization will expand to one Vice Minister, one office, two bureaus, four policy offices, 21 divisions, and one team.

The 2nd Vice Minister will oversee the Energy Industry Office, Resource Industry Policy Bureau, and Nuclear Power Industry Policy Bureau. Under the Energy Industry Office will be the Energy Transition Policy Office, the newly established Power Innovation Policy Office, the upgraded Renewable Energy Policy Office, and the newly established Hydrogen Economy Policy Office. The newly created Power Innovation Policy Office will be responsible for innovating the power industry, including securing a stable power supply mix, fostering new energy industries, and investing in power grid infrastructure, while the Hydrogen Economy Policy Office will handle the activation of the hydrogen economy.

With the establishment of the 2nd Vice Minister, the government's energy transition policies, including the hydrogen economy, are expected to accelerate. The Ministry plans to announce the "Hydrogen Economy Roadmap 2.0," which includes measures to activate green hydrogen, around September.

Candidates for the 2nd Vice Minister position leading energy policy include Joo Youngjun, Director General of the Energy Resources Office, and Kang Kyungsung, Director General of the Industrial Policy Office, both from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

With this expansion of the energy organization, personnel changes among senior officials (office and bureau chief level) in the Ministry are also expected to occur in succession. If an internal candidate is promoted to the Energy Vice Minister, two director-level positions will be created this month alone: the Director of the Energy Industry Office and the newly established Secretary-General position under the "2030 Busan World Expo Bid Committee." The Secretary-General of the Bid Committee is a first-grade position, and it is reported that a current bureau chief from the Ministry will be promoted to fill this role. Personnel changes at the bureau and division chief levels will follow in succession, which is expected to somewhat relieve the chronic personnel stagnation within the Ministry.

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