SME Central Association and KEPCO Hold Meeting to Address SME Supply Price Issues

Korea Federation of SMEs Yeouido Headquarters

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business (Kbiz) announced on the 31st that it held a 'Small and Medium Enterprise On-site Difficulty Meeting' with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) at the Kbiz headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul.

The meeting was organized to resolve difficulties such as activating the adjustment of payment for supplies with KEPCO, based on requests from SMEs supplying KEPCO amid the sharp rise in raw material prices. About 50 participants attended, including Yang Chan-hoe, Head of the Innovation Growth Division at Kbiz, Kim Je-dong, Head of KEPCO's Materials Department, representatives from the Korea Electrical Industry Cooperative, Korea Electric Wire Industry Cooperative, and executives and employees of SMEs trading with KEPCO.

At the meeting, KEPCO explained the 'Price Fluctuation System,' which allows contract prices to be adjusted in response to price changes, and shared new systems such as reflecting costs of eco-friendly materials while listening to opinions from the SME sector. Last year, KEPCO adjusted payment prices for 492 out of 494 applications submitted under the Price Fluctuation System. KEPCO also announced that it is developing a 'Price Fluctuation Automatic Adjustment System (tentative name)' to activate payment adjustments, enhance convenience for partner companies, and expedite work processes.

The SME sector explained industry-specific issues related to payment prices and requested reflection of increased manufacturing costs due to rising raw material prices. In particular, SMEs pointed out that despite the continuous increase in manufacturing cost burdens caused by soaring international raw material and oil prices, the level reflected in payment prices is minimal, emphasizing the need to guarantee appropriate prices reflecting current inflation.

Yang Chan-hoe, Head of the Innovation Growth Division at Kbiz, said, "With international raw material prices soaring daily, SMEs are being pushed to the brink," adding, "We hope that public enterprises like KEPCO will actively lead efforts to activate payment price adjustments and create an environment where SMEs receive fair prices, setting a model case that can spread to the private sector."

Kim Je-dong, Head of KEPCO's Materials Department, stated, "We will actively address difficulties through regular meetings with SMEs and strive to practice fair trade," and added, "We will actively promote win-win cooperation so that SMEs can grow into global strong companies."

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