Shareholders announces 2nd bidding for KAI sale

Major shareholders of Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI) on Monday issued a second public notice on the sale of their majority stake in the aircraft manufacturer.

The state-run Korea Development Bank, the lead manager of the proposed sale of Korea Aerospace's 41.75 percent stake, said it is accepting preliminary bids until Sept. 27.

Major shareholders include the state-run Korea Finance Corp., Hyundai Motor Co., precision machinery maker Samsung Techwin Co and the Doosan Group.

The deal price is estimated at 1.4 trillion won, ($1.2 billion) including a premium for management control of KAI. Korea Aerospace's 41.75 percent stake is valued at 1.06 trillion won based on Monday's morning share price of 26,050 won ($23).

The announcement on the second bidding comes after a first preliminary bid fell through last month due to a lack of competition, as required by law.

Korean Air Lines Co., an affiliate of South Korea's 10th-biggest business group Hanjin, was the sole bidder in the first bidding for the 41.75 percent stake.

Korean Air officials were not immediately available for comment on Monday. Last week, Korean Air said it had no immediate position on the possible second bid.

South Korea's top air carrier has previously said its proposed takeover could create a synergy as the flagship carrier seeks to eventually build its own airplanes as part of its growth strategy. (Yonhap)