Heads of 2 state-run firms fail in management evaluation , Korea

Heads of the state-run nuclear safety agency and coal supplier have been recommended for dismissal due to lackluster management, the finance ministry said Tuesday, amid worries over a serious nationwide power shortage. According to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Park Youn-won, the president of the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, received an "E" grade in the management evaluation. Kim Hyun-tae, the chief executive of the Korea Coal Corp., received the same grade. The ministry cited Park's attempts to recover trust over nuclear power following consecutive shutdowns at two reactors here as failures, and a delay in the operation of two other newly-built reactors due to substandard control cables compounded the public's feelings of ill-ease. The ministry said Kim did not show efforts to curb the public coal company's excessive debts.  The 2012 annual report on the management evaluation of public firms covered a total of 111 state-run companies whose chiefs have worked at their companies for more than six months. Of the total, 15 received an "A", the second highest grade, followed by 33 with a "B" and 30 with a "C". None were given the top score of "S" last year, according to the ministry.