A nationwide drill to prepare for a possible power blackout will start at 10 a.m. for 20 minutes on Thursday, the government said.

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy, which is responsible for the nation’s energy policy, said the drill was aimed at raising the public’s awareness about a possible blackout.

“The training session will start with the sound of siren at 10 a.m. nationwide and it will run under a mock scenario that power reserves fall below 2 million kilowatts,” a ministry official said.

“When the siren goes off, citizens should do power-saving activities at home or offices on a voluntary basis.”

Voluntary power-saving activities include turning off lights and heating devices.

Meanwhile, public organizations, including eight governmental complexes nationwide, will cut power except what is necessary and switch on power generators for emergencies during the training session.

The ministry said public transportation, like buses or subways, and airlines will run as usual during the training to avoid public inconvenience.

The training will be aired through the nation’s leading radio stations in real time.

The ministry hosted a similar training session for a possible blackout last June.

The imbalance between power supply and demand has worsened in Korea over the past few years, rising as one of the key national agenda priorities.

Amid the continuing cold spell, demand for power hit a record high of 76.3 million kilowatts last Friday.

By Seo Jee-yeon  (jyseo@heraldcorp.com)