HMM's acquisition negotiations for SK Shipping have ultimately collapsed. It has been 7 months since HMM was selected as the preferred negotiator in January.
On the 4th, HMM announced, "After being selected as the preferred negotiator for the acquisition of certain assets of SK Shipping, we proceeded with negotiations with the transaction partner, but ultimately the acquisition negotiations collapsed."
Previously, HMM had pushed for the acquisition of SK Shipping to shift away from a business structure focused on container ships and to add a bulk carrier fleet to its business portfolio, negotiating with Hahn & Company, the private equity fund (PEF) operator and largest shareholder of SK Shipping.
However, discussions were halted due to an inability to narrow the gap regarding the sale price. The industry believes that while Hahn & Company valued SK Shipping at around 4 trillion won, HMM was reportedly willing to invest up to about 2 trillion won.