Board of Audit and Inspection Launches Audit of KNOC over "Blue Whale" Allegations

MOTIE Refuses to Submit Public Interest Audit Request Materials to National Assembly
Kwon Hyangyeop: "The Board of Audit and Inspection Must Uncover the Truth Behind the So-Called 'Yoon Suk-yeol Blue Whale Scam'"

The Board of Audit and Inspection has launched an audit into the so-called "Blue Whale" allegations involving Korea National Oil Corporation (hereafter referred to as KNOC).

According to materials submitted by Assemblywoman Hyangyeop Kwon of the National Assembly’s Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee (hereafter referred to as the Industry Committee), the Board of Audit and Inspection will conduct an on-site audit of KNOC’s entire Donghae deep-sea gas field drilling project for a total of 23 days, from November 27 to December 19. This audit follows a public interest audit request received by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (hereafter referred to as MOTIE) on October 23. Previously, on October 15, Minister Kim Jungkwan of MOTIE stated, "I have instructed that a public interest audit request be filed with the Board of Audit and Inspection regarding KNOC."

Hyangyeop Kwon, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea.

The Board of Audit and Inspection is reportedly focusing on the selection process and criteria for Actgeo, the company chosen for KNOC’s Ulleung Basin technical evaluation project; the circumstances surrounding the cancellation of KNOC’s seismic safety review research for the Donghae exploration drilling with the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources; the top-level performance evaluations for the Blue Whale project team and executives; and the promotion of the executive in charge to vice president.

Meanwhile, Assemblywoman Hyangyeop Kwon requested MOTIE to submit the public interest audit request form, but MOTIE has refused to provide the materials, citing the Information Disclosure Act and claiming that disclosure would hinder the fair execution of audit work. However, during a parliamentary audit of MOTIE on October 24, Assemblyman Lee Jongbae of the Industry Committee stated, "Whether to refer issues raised during the parliamentary audit to the Board of Audit and Inspection is for our committee to decide," and demanded, "Please submit the original audit request form."

In response, Minister Kim Jungkwan answered, "Yes." According to the National Assembly Testimony and Appraisal Act, unless otherwise specified by this law, requests for materials for parliamentary audits must be complied with regardless of other laws, meaning that refusing to submit materials on the grounds of the Information Disclosure Act constitutes a violation of the law.

Assemblywoman Hyangyeop Kwon emphasized, "The Board of Audit and Inspection must thoroughly and transparently uncover the truth behind the so-called 'Yoon Suk-yeol Blue Whale scam' without leaving any doubts," and added, "It is also essential to verify to the end whether MOTIE’s request for an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection is not merely an attempt to shift responsibility away from KNOC."

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