' Oil Price-Fixing Allegations' SK Energy: "We Apologize to the Public... Overhaul Pricing System"

"We sincerely apologize for causing concern among the public"... Statement issued under CEO's name
Plans to announce supply prices in advance and end post-settlement
Strengthening internal controls, including oversight of contact with competitors

SK Energy will issue an official apology in response to the Fair Trade Commission's announcement of its investigation findings and work to improve its pricing system and business practices for petroleum products. The company plans to restore market confidence by increasing transparency in its price-setting process and strengthening internal controls related to fair trade.

Oil prices are displayed at a gas station in Mannamui Gwangjang, Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 27th of last month. Yonhap News

On the 8th, SK Energy released a statement under the name of its CEO and president, Kim Jonghwa, saying, "We sincerely apologize for causing concern among the public in connection with the recent announcement of the Fair Trade Commission's investigation findings. We take this matter very seriously."

The company added, "As the relevant procedures are still underway, we will faithfully and transparently present the facts and our position during the Fair Trade Commission's deliberations."

The previous day, the Fair Trade Commission determined that SK Energy and Hyundai Oilbank had exchanged information related to the selling prices of gasoline, diesel, and kerosene for about four years, and that they had colluded twice on selling prices after the U.S.-Iran war. The commission assessed the related sales at 44.1 trillion won.

Using this matter as an opportunity, SK Energy has decided to review its petroleum product pricing and transaction processes overall and pursue four key improvements: greater transparency in its pricing system and improved business practices; stronger fair-trade compliance and internal controls; expanded cooperation with petroleum distribution customers; and a stable energy supply.

First, the company will improve how it determines supply prices for petroleum products. In June, SK Energy announced a new pricing policy, the first of its kind in the industry, under which weekly supply prices are set and announced in advance and post-settlement is discontinued. The company is currently building the relevant systems and plans to use them to make prices more predictable for trading partners such as gas stations.

SK Energy will also strengthen its internal controls related to fair trade. It will expand tailored training for employees responsible for pricing and sales and establish regular fair-trade training of at least two hours per employee each year. The company plans to continuously monitor how information is managed during the price-setting process and strengthen internal cross-checking procedures for major decisions.

In particular, it will strengthen prior approval, subsequent reporting, and monitoring procedures for work-related contact with competitors. It will apply stricter internal standards to conduct that could constitute a fair-trade violation, such as exchanging pricing or sales information, and plans to conduct an internal investigation and external verification once a year.

SK Energy will also review existing business practices, including exclusive-purchase contracts. It plans to continue improving related policies to expand the choices available to distribution customers such as gas stations and establish fair and transparent business relationships.

The company also plans to work toward a stable domestic supply of petroleum products by diversifying its crude oil sources and investing in facilities.

President Kim Jonghwa said, "It is more important than anything to fulfill our role in ensuring a stable supply of key petroleum products and to meet society's expectations for transparency in pricing and transactions, fair competition, and compliance-based management. With these measures as a starting point, we will bring about changes and improvements that markets and customers can see and feel."

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