April 20, 2024

• 

[THE INVESTOR] Hoban Construction, a midsized Korean builder, has made a solo bid for a controlling stake in Daewoo Engineering & Construction, an industry source said on Jan. 19.

State-run Korea Development Bank, which plans to sell a 50.75-percent stake in Daewoo Engineering, will decide next Friday whether it will choose Hoban as a preferred bidder for the stake sale or not, according to the source.

KDB plans to complete the stake sale by July.

KDB, a key creditor of Kumho Asiana Group, purchased the stake in Daewoo Engineering in 2010 to help the debt-ridden conglomerate restructure its finances.

Kumho Asiana’s two subsidiaries -- Kumho Tire and Kumho Industrial -- have been under a debt restructuring program since early 2010 due to a severe cash crunch sparked by the group’s purchase of Daewoo Engineering in 2006.

By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)