Kang Duk Soo spent 11 years turning a failing ship'engine maker into a conglomerate with US$23 billion in assets. He is now dismantling it.

His STX Group put the controlling stake of its shipping unit up for sale last week as it tries to raise 2.5 trillion won (S$2.8 billion) to pay off debt. It has already spent nearly a year looking for a buyer for its affiliated offshore'vessel maker.

STX also said last week that it is holding discussions with potential strategic investors for its Dalian, China shipyard. It had previously planned to hold an initial public offering (IPO) for the yard, one of the two biggest overseas investments by Korean shipbuilders. The group is "firm on our plan to improve our finances" by selling shipping unit STX Pan Ocean Co, it said in a Dec 12 statement. "We also hope this will help to regain market confidence." Mr Kang has already sold a stake in an energy unit for 360 billion won, and he will merge two engine'making units as he seeks to cut costs and pay debts. Talks on the sale of a stake in offshore'vessel maker STX OSV Holdings Ltd are nearing completion, the group said last week.

Source: AmFraser