RUMOURS about the potential merger of South Korea's two shipbuilders are circulating thick and fast, says London's Lloyd's List.
The grapevine has been abuzz with talk that Samsung scion Lee Jae-Yong may want to divest Samsung Heavy Industries. Although, the Samsung group has officially stated on several occasions that such talk is steeped in groundless rumours.
But this speculation found its way back to the rumour mill when the proposed marriage of South Korea's two other top shipbuilders, Hyundai Heavy Industries and DSME, built momentum.
State-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) and China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) have also embarked on merging as their South Korean counterparts seek a tie up.
Among South Korea's big three, Samsung Heavy Industries has won the most major offshore contracts dished out since the oil price collapsed in 2014.
More recently, it scooped up the most coveted bulk shipbuilding orders tendered out for Arctic class liquefied natural gas carriers and LNG-fuelled tankers.
It is also tipped as one of two frontrunners for a series of newbuild box ship orders tendered out by Evergreen.
Yet, some suggest, the South Korean yard operator may have gone far too low on bids.
Samsung Heavy Industries may have caved under pressure to ramp up revenue even at the expense its future bottomline.
In light of this, it is unsurprising that Samsung Group manager Lee Jae-Yong would not want to proactively consolidate South Korea's shipbuilding by acquiring DSME when the latter was put on offer.
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The grapevine has been abuzz with talk that Samsung scion Lee Jae-Yong may want to divest Samsung Heavy Industries. Although, the Samsung group has officially stated on several occasions that such talk is steeped in groundless rumours.
But this speculation found its way back to the rumour mill when the proposed marriage of South Korea's two other top shipbuilders, Hyundai Heavy Industries and DSME, built momentum.
State-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) and China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) have also embarked on merging as their South Korean counterparts seek a tie up.
Among South Korea's big three, Samsung Heavy Industries has won the most major offshore contracts dished out since the oil price collapsed in 2014.
More recently, it scooped up the most coveted bulk shipbuilding orders tendered out for Arctic class liquefied natural gas carriers and LNG-fuelled tankers.
It is also tipped as one of two frontrunners for a series of newbuild box ship orders tendered out by Evergreen.
Yet, some suggest, the South Korean yard operator may have gone far too low on bids.
Samsung Heavy Industries may have caved under pressure to ramp up revenue even at the expense its future bottomline.
In light of this, it is unsurprising that Samsung Group manager Lee Jae-Yong would not want to proactively consolidate South Korea's shipbuilding by acquiring DSME when the latter was put on offer.
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