STX Group, a South Korean shipping and shipbuilding conglomerate, said Friday that it has signed a deal to sell its stake in its European shipbuilding unit to an Italian firm as part of efforts to ease the group’s credit crunch
Under the deal with Fincantieri Oil & Gas SpA, STX Europe AS, the group’s local unit, sold its 50.75 percent stake, or 599.85 million shares, in STX OSV Holdings Ltd. at 1.22 Singapore dollars per share, said the company. STX OSV started trading its shares on the Singapore Exchange in November 2010.
STX Group said it secured a total of 768 billion won ($713.9 million) through the sale and the proceeds will be used to improve its financial structure.
“The merger and acquisition market has been in a slump due to the eurozone fiscal woes,” said the group. “But we successfully completed the purchase on the basis of STX OSV’s technology in offshore support vessels.”
Fincantieri is Italy’s state-owned shipbuilder and one of the biggest cruise making companies in Europe. for some 360 billion won.
STX Group has been seeking to sell units and affiliates as part of efforts to secure cash, thus putting its balance sheet in good shape. Its shipping unit, STX Pan Ocean Co., is also on its selling list.
Earlier this month, it sold its energy unit to Orix Corp. of Japan for some 360 billion won. (Yonhap News)
