Daehan Shipbuilding, a mid-sized shipbuilder specialising in suezmax and aframax tankers, will list on South Korea’s KOSPI stock exchange later this year. This move follows a significant financial turnaround and a surge in global shipbuilding demand.
The company has appointed KB Securities and NH Investment & Securities as lead underwriters, with ShinYoung Securities serving as co-lead underwriter. Analysts anticipate that Daehan’s initial public offering (IPO) could value the company at over ₩1trn ($730m).
Daehan’s financial resurgence began in 2022 after a ₩200bn investment from a consortium led by KH Investment, which acquired a 95% stake in the company. This capital infusion enabled Daehan to exit court receivership. It has since built up a robust orderbook that stretches out beyond three years.
Daehan’s IPO plans coincide a global shipbuilding boom. Broker BRS argued in a report earlier this year that the shipbuilding industry entered a supercycle in 2021, equivalent to the 2003 to 2008 boom.
“This theory, which we have defended for years, is based on the need to replace many of the units delivered as a consequence of the 2003-2008 boom, when annual global shipbuilding output went from 1,483 ships (2005) to 2,591 ships (2010). These vessels will reach 20-25 years of age this decade, and because they were designed and built before the eco-revolution of the 2010s, they need to be replaced with more efficient tonnage,” BRS explained.
