이 기사는 2021년 11월 14일 16시16분 thebell에 표출된 기사입니다

Macquarie Korea Asset Management has been named as the preferred buyer for the facility management business split off from S&I Corp, a wholly owned subsidiary of LG Corp, further expanding its infrastructure presence in South Korea.

The deal is expected to be worth about 400 billion won ($339 million), with Macquarie and LG expected to sign a share purchase agreement as early as this month.

Macquarie is said to have studied S&I’s facility management unit for over a year. Deutsche Bank, law firm Kim & Chang and accounting firm Samjong KPMG are advising Macquarie on the deal.

Other notable infrastructure deals involving Macquarie this year include its acquisition of Haeyang Energy and Seorabeol City Gas. The Australia-headquartered firm purchased a 100% stake in the two energy companies from Glenwood Private Equity for 798 billion won this summer.

Macquarie last month agreed to acquire Deokyang, the country’s biggest producer and supplier of hydrogen, with the transaction expected to close as early as the end of 2021. In 2020 it also bought Daesung Industrial Gases, the country’s biggest industrial gas supplier, for 2.5 trillion won from MBK Partners.

The firm’s fifth South Korean infrastructure fund, Macquarie Korea Opportunities Fund (MKOF) V, will be used to partially fund the acquisition of S&I’s facility management business. MKOF V recently closed with commitments of 650 billion won. The fund will also invest about 200 billion won in Deokyang. With these two deals alone, more than 50% of the fund’s commitments will be drawn down.

MKOF III, which closed at 745 billion won in 2014, also invested in diverse companies in the energy and infrastructure sectors, including Daejeon Cogeneration Plant, Clenco, Koentec, Saehan Environment and Horizon Taeyoung Korea Terminals. (Reporting by Seon-young Kim)