Gov't to place emergency controls, cut tariffs on urea solution
Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum speaks during a meeting at the government complex in Seoul, Nov. 11. Yonhap
South Korea will cut tariffs and place emergency controls on the production and provision of urea solution, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said Thursday, to ease the ongoing supply crunch of the material used to reduce emissions in diesel vehicles.
Kim unveiled the plans during an extraordinary Cabinet meeting called to discuss measures to address urea shortages. During the meeting, the Cabinet was set to approve a government notice that allows authorities to control production, shipments and sales of urea and urea solution.
Under the measure, vendors must report their imports, sales, prices and inventories of urea and urea solution to the government.
The government will also lower tariffs on urea and diversify its import channels.
"As a prime minister who supervises state affairs, I feel heavy responsibility and want to say sorry to people for causing concerns and inconvenience," Kim said of criticism that the government responded late on the supply issue of urea solution. "It will take some time to normalize the supply. We need wisdom to endure these hard times together."
South Korea has been grappling with a shortage of urea water solution, known as diesel exhaust fluid, and its surging prices in recent weeks, as China tightened exports of fertilizers and related materials, including urea, in October amid a power crisis caused by a coal supply shortage. Coal is the main feedstock in the production of urea.
South Korea heavily relies on China for its supply of urea, as 97.6 percent of its imports came from China in the first nine months of this year.
The government earlier said it is in talks with about 10 countries, including those in the Middle East, to import 10,000 tons of urea to help ease the supply shortage.
The country plans to import 200 tons of urea from Vietnam next week and bring in 27,000 liters of urea solution from Australia this week via military aircraft.
It will also bring in 18,700 tons of urea from China soon.
To stabilize the market, authorities have also begun crackdowns on excessive hoarding and illegal distribution of urea and urea solution. (Yonhap)