Korea weighs LNG price cap as war spikes costs, KOGAS fears ballooning receivables in General Energy News 10/06/2026 As the price of liquefied natural gas (LNG) used by power generators as fuel has surged due to the United States–Iran war, the government is reviewing a plan to change the settlement method for wholesale LNG prices to curb electricity rate hikes. In response, Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS), which imports LNG and sells it to power generators, is worried that its accounts receivable of more than 13 trillion won could grow even further. According to the power generation industry on the 9th, Minister Kim Seong-hwan of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment said at a press briefing on the 4th, “We are preparing measures so that a gas price spike, like during the Russia–Ukraine war, does not lead to a heavier electricity bill burden or a larger deficit at Korea Electric Power Corporation.” Related to this, the ministry is said to be reviewing measures to manage the wholesale LNG prices that the gas corporation supplies to power generators. The introduction of a cap on wholesale LNG prices is also being discussed as one of the government’s options. In the domestic power market, the system marginal price (SMP) is determined by the LNG price. If a cap is introduced on wholesale LNG prices, the SMP will also have a ceiling, curbing the magnitude of electricity rate increases. Managing wholesale LNG prices is also a way to reduce side effects seen when the SMP cap was implemented in the past. When international LNG prices surged during the Russia–Ukraine war in 2022, the government implemented an SMP cap to ease the burden of electricity rate hikes. However, some argued that solar power operators with virtually no generation cost and certain private power producers reaped excessive revenue. The problem is that if a ceiling is placed on wholesale LNG prices, the size of the gas corporation’s accounts receivable could expand further. Even if the gas corpor