As the signing of the final contract for the sale of SK Siltron equity, discussed between SK Group and Doosan Group, has been delayed, speculation surfaced that the sale was being reconsidered. But the two sides were said to be negotiating over an adjustment to the SK Siltron sale price. Since Doosan was selected as the preferred bidder for the SK Siltron sale in Dec. last year, conditions in the semiconductor industry have changed, which is cited as a main reason.
According to the business community on the 26th, the two sides have continued talks to conclude a final contract, fine-tuning detailed terms related to the sale price and the transaction structure in recent days.
An SK official said, "In the market, some see it as a breakdown in talks or a return to square one, but the actual mood is different," and added, "It's not about dropping the transaction itself, but it's correct to understand this as the phase of polishing the final terms."
SK Group pushed to sell SK Siltron last year to rebalance (business restructuring) and liquidate assets as part of groupwide efforts to improve its financial structure. The sale target is the remaining 70.6%, excluding the SK Siltron equity (29.4%) held by SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won.
SK Siltron is a company that produces silicon wafers, a key semiconductor material. Against the backdrop of the growing importance of the semiconductor supply chain amid the spread of the artificial intelligence (AI) industry, projections emerged that SK Siltron could become a strategic asset for SK Group. As a result, some in the market raised the question of whether the SK Siltron sale would fall through. When Chey met reporters at the Computex 2026 venue in Taipei, Taiwan, on the 2nd and said regarding the SK Siltron sale, "The working-level team will decide," it added weight to the possibility of the sale falling through.
However, the two sides are said to be discussing not whether to sell, but focusing on the sale price. The recent improvement in semiconductor industry conditions is said to be acting as a new variable in the negotiations. Accordingly, the two sides are reportedly conducting a reassessment of SK Siltron's asset value and its mid- to long-term growth. In the business community, the background of the transaction delay is also analyzed as lying not in withdrawing the sale, but in valuing the company and refining the transaction terms.
Until early last year, the market estimated the value of the SK Siltron equity up for sale at 2 trillion to 3 trillion won. But by late last year, talk began circulating that it would be in the 4 trillion to 5 trillion won range, and recently figures above 7 trillion won have been mentioned. The share prices of global wafer corporations have surged sharply this year, reflecting market expectations for the semiconductor materials sector. The share price of Japan's Shin-Etsu Chemical rose about 53%, from 4,944 yen at the start of the year to 7,549 yen as of last week. Japan's SUMCO jumped about 170%, from 1,536 yen to 4,152 yen.
SK Group's rebalancing stance is still intact, according to reports. The SK Siltron sale is one of the key tasks in SK Group's portfolio restructuring. From the perspective of improving the financial structure, selling SK Siltron benefits SK Group. SK Siltron's operating profit fell from 315.5 billion won in 2024 to 193.1 billion won in 2025. Total borrowings increased more than twofold, from about 1.9 trillion won in 2022 to 3.0855 trillion won as of the end of March this year. For SK Inc., which holds SK Siltron equity, the SK Siltron sale proceeds should be used to reduce net debt and improve the financial structure. As of the first quarter this year, SK Inc.'s net debt was about 7.3 trillion won.
A Doosan official said, "It is difficult to confirm details related to the negotiations."