KEPCO Launches 'Caring Company' Initiative with 30 Billion KRW Contribution to SME Win-Win Cooperation Fund

Discovering and nurturing 500 startups in the new energy industry, promoting support for eco-friendly energy technology development

Kwon Chil-seung, Minister of SMEs and Startups.
[Photo by Ministry of SMEs and Startups]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) will contribute 30 billion KRW to a win-win cooperation fund with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and foster startups in the energy sector, positioning itself as a 'Caring Company.'

'Caring Company' refers to a voluntary win-win cooperation company that goes beyond traditional cooperation with partner companies by sharing its strengths such as capabilities and know-how with non-partner companies and small business owners.

On the 30th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it signed a business agreement at the KEPCO Art Center with Korea Electric Power Corporation and the Korea Electrical Industry Promotion Association to foster innovative energy industry companies and spread ESG culture.

This agreement is the seventh under the newly launched 'Caring Company 2.0,' which pre-selects companies in timely key areas such as ESG (environment, social, governance), the Korean New Deal, carbon neutrality, and COVID-19 recovery, and promotes multidimensional connections with SMEs and small business owners.

KEPCO, as Korea's leading energy public enterprise playing a key role in the domestic power industry, was selected as a 'Caring Company 2.0' for its proactive commitment to establishing a cooperative system for mutual growth with energy SMEs and its various efforts to grow alongside local communities.

Through this agreement, KEPCO will discover 500 startups in new energy industries such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data, and electric vehicles by 2025, supporting each company with up to 100 million KRW for initial startup costs and consulting. It will also support innovative growth of energy SMEs through overseas expansion by conducting pilot projects for joint overseas project orders, hosting export exhibitions, and expanding the use of KEPCO’s export promotion brand.

It will support innovative growth of energy SMEs through overseas expansion by conducting pilot projects for joint overseas project orders, hosting export exhibitions, and expanding the use of KEPCO’s export promotion brand.

KEPCO plans to support R&D in eco-friendly energy and carbon neutrality for SMEs (up to 2 billion KRW) and expand the purchase ratio of low-carbon and eco-friendly equipment, carrying out various projects to spread ESG culture to SMEs and local communities.

To revitalize win-win cooperation with SMEs, KEPCO will contribute 30 billion KRW over six years to the win-win cooperation fund and additionally promote mutual growth projects with other energy sector SMEs beyond the agreement tasks.

Jung Seung-il, CEO of KEPCO, said, "With this Caring Company agreement, KEPCO will do its best to foster and discover startups in the new energy industry sector and to spread ESG culture together with SMEs and local communities."

Minister Kwon Chil-seung of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups stated, "This agreement is expected to serve as a foundation for accelerating energy transition and responding to carbon neutrality by sharing KEPCO’s strengths and capabilities with SMEs. The Ministry will also make policy efforts such as expanding the scale of related support projects so that SMEs can quickly respond to carbon neutrality."

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