Dongbu-led consortium named preferred bidder for 83.45% Hanjin Heavy stake

A Dongbu Corp.-led consortium was chosen as the preferred bidder group by creditors for the 83.45 percent stake of Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Co.

The Hanjin stake was 63.44 percent owned by the seven South Korean financial institutions and 20.01 percent by three Filipino financial firms.

The group of Hanjin's creditors was led by the Korea Development Bank.

The Dongbu-led consortium, which beat two competitors, including a group led by SM Line Corp., said it expects its acquisition of Hanjin will create synergy in many business areas.

The stake sale is expected to be concluded early next year after gaining approval from authorities, including South Korea's arms procurement agency, Defense Acquisition Program Administration.

Hanjin Heavy, which has been fully dedicated to building battleships, suffered from capital erosion last year due to the troubles at its Subic shipyard in the Philippines.