SK ecoplant's subsidiary SK oceanplant will be acquired by a new private equity fund (PEF) management company.
On the 1st, according to investment banking (IB) industry sources, SK ecoplant selected DIO as the preferred bidder for the sale of SK oceanplant.
The sale involves a 37.6% equity stake in SK oceanplant held by SK ecoplant, valued at approximately 470 billion won based on the day's market price. It is reported that the sale price has been determined at a similar level.
SK oceanplant traces its origins to Samkang M&T, founded in 1996. In 2021, it was acquired by SK ecoplant for about 460 billion won, with the founders, former Samkang M&T CEO Song Mu-seok and Song Jeong-seok, chairman of Samkang Metal, remaining as the second-largest shareholders. Currently, the Song family's holdings and Samkang Metal together account for 20.73% of the equity.
Since SK ecoplant first considered selling, it hoped to sell the second-largest shareholder's equity as well; however, there was a significant gap in expectations with them, and it has been reported that only the SK side's equity will be sold separately.
DIO asset management was established in March of last year under the name 'DIOcean Partners.' The capital is 2.6 billion won.
DIO asset management is known to be a company in which Kang Duk-soo, former chairman of STX Group, was heavily involved during its establishment. Currently, 100% of the equity is held by SUM Global (formerly DIOcean Invest), where Kang's daughter, Kang Kyung-rim, works as an auditor.
Currently, Jeong Jung-soo, the CEO leading DIO asset management, is also from STX, and the non-executive director Choi Im-yeob is known to have served as the CEO of STX Engine.
Meanwhile, SK ecoplant is expected to transform into a corporation supporting the semiconductor industry as a result of this sale of SK oceanplant. SK ecoplant acquired SK Air Plus and semiconductor module manufacturer Essencore last year, and this year, it integrated SK Trichem, SK Resonac, SK Materials JNC, and SK Materials Performance, which were under SK Materials.