There is a widespread worldwide awareness that foreign companies are falling victim to Korean crooks. Do not expect ANY Korean Company to act in a trust-worthy, civilized or honourable manner. Do not be fooled into thinking that you have a contract with them, it is their culture!

The struggling Korean economy is headed by corrupt Korean Government Officials and Corporate Executives, who are more interested in lining their own pockets. This mentality then flows down through the ranks of  Korean society. 

Following an international call for bids in 1999, we were selected to carry out the design of an LNG tank for KGE (Korea Gas Engineering & Construction) and its sister company KOGAS. Immediately after the kick-off meeting, we were made aware that the new elected Vice President of KOGAS, Mr Lee, Jin-Hong decided to assign the same contract to another company he palled with, to collect bribes. A veteran crook, Mr Lee stalled every contractual payment due. 

After four months of delinquency on payments, we found ourselves with no other option than to remove from our office the KGE/KOGAS engineers in training. Whilst we were troubled by this unavoidable action, we were amazed that the President and CEO of KGE, Mr Chung, Joong-Khil, a graduate of Mr Lee's stable, initiated elaborate schemes so that he could add another notch under his belt for successfully robbing another foreign company.  Mr. Chung, Joong-Khil has established an international reputation for extorting bribes.

The pride displayed by Mr Chung in his engaging in criminal conduct was shocking to us. He saw robbing foreign companies as the stuff that makes Korean heroes. Our subsequent inquiries with other overseas companies that dealt in the past with KGE and KOGAS yielded a unanimous feedback: KGE and KOGAS, the crown jewels of the Korean government, are nothing more than tin pot operations run by crooks. 

In an era where globalization of the world economy is the order of the day, the international community has every reason to be concerned about rogue entities such as the Korean Government, who own KGE and Kogas, and support their criminal endeavors. This kind of conduct begs the question: "how can the civilized world be expected to deal with a people who have no honor, no dignity and no reputation to protect?"

KGE/KOGAS intention to partake in the international LNG industry represents a bigger problem. Manned by bureaucrats without any experience, except copying the work of other engineering companies, even when it is wrong, KGE and KOGAS represent a major threat to an industry known for its high safety track record and exceptionally high standard of business conduct. 

We hope that by sharing our experiences with the international community, will help other entities and individuals considering dealing with the Koreans.

Do not take our word for it, check with your own embassy!