The candidate for acquiring the equity of SK Innovation's liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Boryung has been narrowed down to four.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 20th, SK Innovation has confirmed the selection of four candidates including IMM Investment, Macquarie Asset Management, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), and a consortium of Noe & Partners and Korea Investment & Securities for its shortlist in the sale of a 50% equity stake in the Boryung LNG terminal.
The sellers have granted due diligence opportunities to the shortlisted candidates. A formal bidding will take place at the end of September or the beginning of October, followed by the signing of the final stock purchase agreement (SPA). Standard Chartered Securities is in charge of the sale.
In the preliminary bidding held on the 7th, domestic and foreign private equity fund (PEF) managers with strengths in infrastructure investment, including the four selected for the shortlist, such as BlackRock, Brookfield Asset Management, Stonebridge Asset Management, and iSquared Capital, participated.
The Boryung LNG terminal is a joint venture established in 2013 by SK E&S and GS Energy. It stores the LNG imported through LNG carriers and then vaporizes it for supply to power plants or petrochemical companies.
SK and GS Group's major subsidiaries have signed long-term supply contracts, generating stable cash flow. Last year's revenue of the Boryung LNG terminal reached 256 billion won, with an operating profit of 93.9 billion won. The annual EBITDA is about 200 billion won, and the total corporate value is estimated to be up to 2 trillion won.
SK Innovation is selling its equity stake in the Boryung LNG terminal to improve its financial structure.