SK Innovation has selected IMM Investment as the preferred bidder to acquire a 49.9% stake in Boryeong LNG Terminal for 600 billion won ($420 million), marking another step in the South Korean conglomerate’s retreat from non-core assets.
GS Energy, which jointly operates the facility, will purchase the remaining 0.1% to secure management control. The arrangement leaves IMM as a financial investor while GS Energy runs day-to-day operations at South Korea’s key liquefied natural gas import hub.
The terminal, which stores and regasifies imported LNG for power plants and petrochemical companies, generated 93.9 billion won ($66 million) in operating profit on revenue of 256 billion won last year. The bidding process attracted Macquarie Asset Management, Canadian pension fund CDPQ, and a consortium of Noh & Partners with Korea Investment & Securities.
SK Innovation, the intermediary holding firm of SK Group, plans to divest 1.5 trillion won worth of assets this year as it works to repay debts and buy out private equity investors from its struggling battery unit SK On. The group has been reeling from a prolonged petrochemical downturn and slower-than-expected electric vehicle adoption.
SK affiliates will maintain usage rights at the terminal through long-term contracts extending beyond 20 years, according to investment banking sources. Standard Chartered Securities advised on the transaction.
