The chairman of Korea’s Harim Group has confirmed it would submit a new bid for HMM if the carrier was put up for sale again, according to Alphaliner today, reports The Loadstar.
State-owned Korea Development Bank (KDB) and Korea Ocean Business Corp (KOBC) retained majority control of the carrier after the sale of their combined 57.9% stake in HMM to Harim fell through in February.
Preferred bidder
Harim and private equity fund JKL Partners had offered $4.9bn and were confirmed as HMM’s preferred bidder, but KDB and KOBC said: “During the seven-week negotiation period, we worked diligently on mutual trust, but the negotiations ultimately broke down due to differences of opinion on some issues.”
In June, KDB chief Kang Seog-hoon said there was no intention to resume a bidding process, adding: “If the sale begins anew, we will need to come up with a new plan based on various factors, including the government’s policy for the shipping industry, but I doubt it will come anytime soon.”
Largest container carrier
HMM is South Korea’s largest container carrier and is the eighth-biggest in the world. According to Alphaliner data, it has a fleet capacity of just over 880,000 teu across 79 ships, 54 of which it owns. Also, it has 12 vessels on order, for 110,000 teu, which would boost its current fleet capacity by 12.4%.
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Source: Theloadstar
