Newly appointed CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) chairman Jerry Ou (歐嘉瑞) yesterday said he would focus on improving labor relations and occupational safety at the state-run oil refiner, as well as boosting its core businesses.
Ou’s appointment is widely regarded as a way to improve labor relations after morale in the company’s ranks were shaken by gasoline product quality control issues last year under the watch of former chairman Tai Chein (戴謙).
Local Chinese-language media have reported that the CPC workers’ union was late last year planning to launch a vote of no-confidence against Tai, which was averted when the Executive Yuan intervened.
Photo: CNA
Tai’s background in agriculture and animal sciences, and his inexperience in the oil and petrochemicals sector were also sources of criticism, the reports said.
To improve the company’s core businesses, Ou said that he would prioritize accelerating the development of overseas mining operations and step up investments in countries listed in the government’s New Southbound Policy.
As for the refining business, boosting overall efficiency and transitioning toward more high-value-added segments would be prioritized, Ou said.
As the company is facing challenges brought by an updated national energy strategy — which relies on natural gas to meet half of total consumption in place of nuclear and coal power — it would build the infrastructure needed to meet its goals and would continue to diversify the nation’s fuel imports, he added.
Required infrastructure include a third natural gas storage terminal and a pipeline to transport fuel on a north-south axis, Ou said.
Previous efforts at pursuing battery technology, which began under Tai’s leadership, could be placed on the back burner, he said.
“We aim to leverage CPC’s existing technical capabilities to support Taiwan’s adoption of renewable energy and circular economy policies, and our efforts in battery development and developing the company’s network of gas stations as nodes to manage microgrids might see some adjustment,” Ou said.
New capabilities in artificial intelligence and big data analysis would be introduced to improve occupational safety and devise a medium-to-long-term emissions reduction plan, he added.
Ou, who was on the company’s board of directors before being appointed chairman, has served as the chief of the Bureau of Energy, and as the deputy chief of the Bureau of Foreign Trade and the Industrial Development Bureau.
Regarding gasoline prices, Ou said that he would continue to support the government’s price stabilization policy, which has seen the company take on NT$200 million (US$6.5 million) in additional oil import costs last month.
He said that crude oil prices are expected to move in a range of US$50 to US$70 per barrel this year.
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