Opposition Launches Full-Scale Attack Raising Doubts About 'Daewang Whale'

The Democratic Party of Korea, which had been skeptical about the 'Daewang Whale'?a region around Yeongil Bay in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, considered a potential site for oil and gas deposits?has begun to intensify its offensive. The opposition party raised doubts about the credibility of the company that reported the deposit estimates and pointed out that decisions are being made bypassing the relevant ministries.

At the party's supreme council meeting on the 17th, Jeong Cheong-rae, a senior member of the Democratic Party, highlighted the fact that the Australian oil development company Woodside had withdrawn by giving up 50% of its production rights related to the area where the oil and gas deposit potential was announced, calling it "very strange." Jeong compared Actgeo, the company that provided the basis for the deposit potential, stating, "Its headquarters is a residential house, and it is practically a one-person company with an annual sales of 38 million KRW," while "Woodside, which withdrew, had annual sales of 23.094 trillion KRW (as of 2022) and 4,500 employees." Earlier, Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, posted on social media the day before, saying, "We need to carefully watch this sudden oil-producing country theory," and added, "I hope it goes well, but I have many concerns."

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Jeong Jin-wook, a Democratic Party lawmaker assigned to the Industry, Trade, Energy, Small and Medium Enterprises Committee, expressed skepticism about the series of events surrounding President Yoon’s announcement of the oil and gas deposit potential on SBS Radio. Jeong, who requested basic data from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, pointed out, "Trust in Actgeo, which claimed there are 14 billion barrels, has declined, so I requested basic factual data, but most of it was under confidentiality agreements, making it difficult to disclose." Referring to Woodside, which conducted exploration before Actgeo and withdrew after judging the site 'not promising,' he criticized, "The government says they withdrew due to mergers and acquisitions (M&A), but if this was such a significant oil field, shouldn’t it have been considered more promising?"

He also pointed out that the relevant ministry, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, was 'excluded' from the overall discussion and decision-making process. Jeong said, "The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy was completely excluded during President Yoon’s briefing," and added, "This raises questions about who actually led this project." Seo Young-kyo, a senior member of the Democratic Party, said, "There are reports that the order for exploratory drilling was given on the same day President Yoon held the briefing," and added, "We cannot help but raise suspicions about the president’s order for exploratory drilling being issued on the day of the announcement."

The ruling party expressed dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party’s suspicions. On the same day, Choo Kyung-ho, floor leader of the People Power Party, said at the party’s floor meeting, "As the world’s 10th largest energy consumer and a resource-poor, energy-deficient country, if we succeed in exploratory drilling, we expect not only economic benefits but also significant strength in terms of energy security," and criticized, "In the face of such good news, the Democratic Party is quick to throw cold water."

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