Electricity talks deadlocked

Negotiations on inter-Korean cooperation in the electric power field have reached a stalemate.

Representatives from the two Koreas made formal and informal contacts on Friday, the second day of the talks, in a bid to narrow their differences on the issue of conducting a joint electric power survey.

The Southern delegation proposed joint inspections of power plants and transmission systems in both South and North Korea to explore practical ways of providing electricity to the North and other means of cooperation. North Korean delegates demanded immediate delivery of 500,000 kw of power to ease the dire power shortage in North Korea, suggesting only a limited survey afterward.

The talks are feared to break up because the gap between the two sides is so wide. The South Korean delegation is scheduled to leave Pyongyang Saturday morning and return to Seoul via Shenyang.