This article was displayed on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove (MM) site at 10:11 a.m. on Mar. 27, 2026.
Global Sae-A is expected to begin a full sale of its paper division as early as next week by distributing an information memorandum (IM) and formally seeking bidders. With the company said to be sticking to a sale price of "at least 2 trillion won," the industry is watching whether global paper giants such as Indonesia's Sinar Mas will jump into the race.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 27th, Global Sae-A and the sale manager have narrowed the field of potential buyers and will distribute the IM soon. On the 17th, about 20 potential bidders received teaser letters. Multiple financial investors (FIs) are said to be reviewing teaming up with strategic investors (SIs) to enter the bidding.
Global Sae-A acquired Tailim Paper and Packaging from IMM Private Equity (PE) for about 730 billion won in 2019. In 2024, it acquired Jeonju Paper and Won Power from Morgan Stanley PE (MSPE) for about 650 billion won. In total, roughly 1.38 trillion won was invested. Factoring in a control premium, capital expenditures made over the years, and market dominance, Global Sae-A is said to argue that a 2 trillion won valuation is justifiable.
Assets on the block are Tailim Paper and Tailim Packaging, the No. 1 domestic producers of containerboard and boxes; Jeonju Paper, the No. 1 producer of newsprint; and the combined heat and power plant Jeonju Won Power.
According to the industry, Global Sae-A's paper division holds about a 30% share of the domestic containerboard market. Tailim affiliates previously had around a 21% share, to which about 9% from corrugating medium (containerboard) produced by Jeonju Paper was added.
In the newsprint market, Jeonju Paper remains firmly in first place. Its market share is said to be around 45%. Combined, Tailim Paper and Jeonju Paper in Global Sae-A's paper division produce about 2 million tons of paper annually, the largest in Korea.
However, with the newsprint market smaller than in the past, industry officials say the key question is how much overall corporate value will be recognized. Jeonju Paper's EBITDA last year was about 14.2 billion won. But heavy depreciation led to an operating loss of 10.8 billion won.
Jeonju Won Power, by contrast, generated about 39 billion won in EBITDA last year and 42.1 billion won in 2024, serving as the "cash cow" of the paper division. An IB industry official said, "The swing factor in this sale is how much (potential buyers) believe Jeonju Won Power, a solid profit source, can offset the structural limitations of the sluggish newsprint business," adding, "Ultimately, Jeonju Won Power's stable cash generation will underpin a price tag in the trillions."
The industry is watching the possibility of participation by global pulp and paper companies. Leveraging massive forest resources, they have stable supply chains for high-quality virgin pulp (natural pulp) that they produce in-house. If they acquire Jeonju Paper and push a grade conversion that repurposes large newsprint machines to higher-margin packaging or specialty papers, the aging plants could be reborn as global core production bases with maximized profitability.
The market is particularly focused on whether Indonesia's Sinar Mas Group will participate. Sinar Mas is one of the most aggressive foreign SIs in Korea's M&A market recently.
In fact, APP, the paper affiliate under Sinar Mas, acquired MSS Holdings, the parent of domestic hygiene product corporations Monalisa and Ssangyong C&B, for about 400 billion won in 2024. In May last year, it acquired semiconductor equipment company Hosan Tech for about 200 billion won, and in November it signed a main contract to acquire Hyundai LNG Shipping.
In addition, Japan's Oji Holdings is cited as a candidate. Oji Holdings has shifted its business portfolio toward packaging and functional materials in response to declining demand for newsprint and printing paper in Japan. The market sees this experience as a potential strength in reshaping Jeonju Paper's business. China's packaging paper company Nine Dragons Paper is also mentioned as a potential candidate.