Natural gas prices have fallen below one-fifth since their peak in the summer of

[Sorry about the fake news]

A post that I see often these days.

- Natural gas prices have fallen below one-fifth since their peak in the summer of 22,
- District Heating Corporation recorded a record surplus last year for 23 years,
- Why is heating expensive? Bad energy public corporation throwing a heating bomb.
--> Let's judge the administration?

All arguments seem to be true, but misleading, fake news in conclusion.

1) There are several indicators of global natural gas prices, but North America's pipeline natural gas prices have fallen below 1/5 since the peak. Korea does not import natural gas from the United States through piping. Korea imports LNG that has cooled natural gas to minus 163 degrees Celsius, which is mainly linked to international oil prices to form import prices. In other words, if the international oil price is 1/5 of the peak, the district heating corporation would be reprehensible, but in reality, it is only two-thirds of the peak, and the level of international oil prices and LNG prices we import is still higher than the average for the past 10 years.

2) District Heating Corporation recorded a deficit until the third quarter of 23, but suddenly made a large surplus in the fourth quarter, resulting in a surplus for the entire 23-year performance. Did ordinary people make money by suddenly raising their heating bills? Quite the opposite, in fact. As the situation worsened to the point where bond issuance was a problem due to continuous deficit, the government allowed them to change the "accounting standard". I was treating the difference as receivable by receiving a heat bill lower than the gas cost, but this time I "accounted for" that I made a profit. In actual cash flow, District Heating Corporation is still in a deficit, and still receives heat charges lower than the gas cost. Even if it makes a surplus on the book, it is in a difficult situation to issue bonds to sell insufficient cash and start a company.

3) In Europe, heating costs per household increased more than 10 times during the global energy crisis 22 years ago, but in Korea, the government controlled prices and reduced the increase to less than twice. Since 99.9% of fuel from district heating or city gas is imported from abroad through LNG, energy companies are forced to bear costs and suffer by freezing or cutting employees' salaries.

Regardless of the government, state-run energy companies such as KEPCO, Korea Gas Corporation, and Korea Heating Corporation have devoted themselves to stabilizing the lives of ordinary people over the past few decades by absorbing fluctuations in international energy prices. There are many side effects due to the fixed structure (such as daily life without energy conservation at consumer prices that ignore cost), but the expression that the government is extorting the common people is a slap in the face of a crying person.

Please don't do this. People who are struggling in public energy companies are devastated by these fake news.