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Busan Metropolitan City and Korea Electric Power Corporation Sign Agreement to Expand Energy Voucher Use for Small Business Owners

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Chun Jae-soo) announced that it signed an agreement with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) at 2:00 p.m. yesterday (October 12) in the International Protocol Room at Busan City Hall to expand the use of energy vouchers for small business owners.

The signing ceremony was attended by representatives from both organizations, including the Director-General of the Citizens' Economy Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City and the Head of KEPCO's Busan-Ulsan Regional Headquarters. The representatives pledged mutual cooperation to ensure the smooth operation of the energy voucher program and support electricity bill payments for small business owners.

The agreement was established to ease the burden of energy costs on small business owners and increase voucher utilization by expanding eligible expenses from vehicle fuel costs to electricity bills.

Busan Metropolitan City has been implementing the Energy Voucher Support Program for Small Business Owners to assist local businesses facing difficulties due to rising energy costs. Since September 28, the city has been providing energy vouchers worth KRW 200,000 per person to small business owners in Busan in the form of policy support funds through Dongbaekjeon.

Even before the program was launched, Busan Metropolitan City had been holding preliminary discussions with KEPCO to enable electricity bill payments using Dongbaekjeon. The agreement formally establishes a cooperative framework between the two organizations.

Under the agreement, the two organizations will cooperate in establishing and operating an electricity bill payment system, managing Dongbaekjeon-affiliated merchants, providing small business owners with guidance on payment methods, and developing a response system to address inquiries and inconveniences arising during voucher use.

The agreement is significant in that it enhances the effectiveness of support for small business owners by addressing practical needs identified during the program's implementation.

As energy costs represent a fixed monthly operating expense for small business owners, expanding voucher coverage to include electricity bills in addition to vehicle fuel costs is expected to help ease their financial burden.

Park Dong-seok, Director-General of the Citizens' Economy Bureau of Busan Metropolitan City, said, "Electricity bills are an essential operating expense that small business owners must pay every month. Allowing energy vouchers to be used for electricity bill payments is therefore a meaningful step toward easing their financial burden in practical terms."

He added, "We will continue to work closely with KEPCO to make energy vouchers more convenient for small business owners to use and ensure that our support delivers tangible benefits to businesses on the ground."