ED Energy supply shortage hits home

U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to deliver a televised speech about his war on Iran from the Cross Hall of the White House in Washington, Wednesday. AP-Yonhap

The Korean government for the first time raised the crisis level for crude oil supply to "alert" on Thursday. "Alert" is the third-highest level in the government's four-tiered warning system — attention, caution, alert and serious. The level for natural gas was also elevated to "caution." In line with this, the government tightened the public sector's vehicle rotation system from not driving one in five days to a two-day odd-even schedule. Starting April 8, public parking lots will also implement a separate five-day rotation system.

The Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment assessed that with the two-day driving rotation system, 17,000 to 87,000 barrels of crude oil can be saved each month. The limit on public parking can also save around 5,000 to 27,000 barrels a month.

These measures seem minimal, as Korea uses about 2.4 million barrels a day, according to 2011 data. At best, they should have been implemented earlier. It takes time to rebuild disrupted energy supply channels and available bootstrap measures should be embraced more aggressively for an energy-dependent Korea.

While many had anticipated a positive signal from U.S. President Donald Trump's national address, his ambitious yet ambiguous message, among others, that the U.S. will pound Iran for the next two to three weeks — sending it "back to the Stone Ages" — has pushed bourses down and oil prices up.

The disruption has quickly dissipated the initial assurance that Seoul had at the start of the war that its 208 days of strategic reserves will buttress future efforts for purchase through diversified channels. The latest government plan is an acknowledgement that the supply issue may intensify, with reserves dwindling by 20 percent so far.

The private sector has been largely asked for its voluntary participation in the government's efforts to conserve energy. But the government should consider requiring the general public to do so in order to alleviate the pain stemming from the energy supply disruptions.

While the Korean government has been consumed with the macro elements of the U.S. war on Iran — whether to join in the U.S. request to send warships to open the Strait of Hormuz and how to stabilize the energy supply — the situation on the ground here has grown dire. Another supply problem severely affecting Korea concerns naphtha, a material used in various manufacturing items, including plastic bags, which are ubiquitous in Korean commerce.

Already, a supply shortage of plastic trash bags can be seen at supermarkets across the country. This supply problem has also affected restaurants, where plastic goods are vital to delivery services. For individual households, many are wondering how to dispose of their food waste if the supply of government-designated food waste bags falls short. After mulling whether to limit the number of plastic trash and food waste bags per person, the climate ministry announced Thursday it would not do so. While these issues seem small in scale compared to the global political and economic big picture, relevant measures for our everyday problems are needed.

Koreans seem less willing to participate in government energy-saving measures than before. But the fact of the matter is that Korea imports about 70 percent of its crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz. There needs to be a more thorough review and assessment of what Trump meant when he urged nations that "receive oil through the Hormuz Strait" to "take care of that passage" during his televised speech. But his previous comments and frustration about allies' rebuffing his requests for military assistance, coupled with Iran's plan to collect fees from nations with ships passing through the strait, compounds the road ahead for Korea. This poses challenges not only with energy security, but also politically, in terms of Seoul's relations with Washington, and economically, as the country grapples with effects of the conflict.