Doosan Group ushers in new chairman

Park Jeong-won was inaugurated as chairman of power equipment and construction conglomerate Doosan Group on Friday, heralding the fourth-generation of management for the country's 11th-largest business group.

Park, who was chief of the group's holding firm Doosan Corp., took the position at its board meeting earlier in the day, replacing his predecessor Park Yong-maan.

He is the eldest son of former Doosan Group chairman Park Yong-kon and Yong-maan's nephew, and first joined an affiliate of Doosan Group in 1985.

He served as president of Doosan Engineering & Construction Co., and more recently worked at the group's de facto holding firm Doosan Corp. Before that, Jeong-won graduated from Korea University in Seoul and earned an MBA from Boston University in 1989.

The new chairman has spearheaded the group's new businesses such as duty-free operations and fuel cells.

With the inauguration, Doosan Group, which started as a small shop in 1896, ushered in the fourth-generation of management.

Doosan Group has top power equipment maker Doosan Heavy Industries Co., No. 1 construction equipment maker Doosan Infracore Co., Doosan Engineering & Construction and a few other affiliates under its wing.

The new chairmanship comes as Doosan Group is seeking to speed up the sale of core assets in a bid to improve its financial footing.

Doosan Infracore, the group's construction equipment maker, has reached an agreement to sell its machine tool business unit to local private equity fund MBK Partners for 1.13 trillion won (US$921 million), according to industry sources.

The company also plans to list its unit Doosan Bobcat Co. on the local bourse in a bid to improve its financial health. Doosan Infracore took over Doosan Bobcat in 2007 from Caterpillar for $4.9 billion won.

Doosan Infracore has been mired in a protracted slump in the construction sector, in China particularly.

Doosan Group's defense unit, Doosan DST, is also up for sale. Hanwha Group, LIG Group and other potential investors have shown interest in taking over the unit, a deal estimated at some 600 billion won.

Last month, Doosan Group also sold its stake in Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. for some 300 billion won, whose proceeds will be used to beef up its financial status. (Yonhap)