South Korea's state-run energy firm on Monday said it has decided to maintain the current electricity rate in the third quarter.

The Korea Electric Power Corporation(KEPCO) said it will keep the electricity rate from the previous quarter during the July to September period despite the recent hike in the global price of resources.

KEPCO said it needed to raise the rate due to sharp rises in global fuel prices since late last year, but decided to retain the current rate to ease the financial burden on local households amid the prolonged pandemic and rising inflation. 

The company, however, added it may raise costs in the fourth quarter should the global price of resources continue to gather ground. 

KEPCO adopted flexible electricity rates linked to global fuel prices this year, in a move to improve its profitability.