KT Submarine to rename itself LS Marine Solution

LS Group expects synergy through vertical integration of the subsea cable business with LS Cable

KT Submarine's subsea cable-laying vessel GL2030

Mi-Sun Kang 1

2023-08-02 16:15:23 misunny@hankyung.com

Tech, Media & Telecom

South Korea’s undersea cable company KT Submarine Co. will change its name to LS Marine Solution following its integration into the LS Group.

KT Submarine plans to hold a shareholders' meeting on August 17 at KT Songjeong Tower in Busan. It will decide on changes to the articles of association, including a change in the company name.

LS Cable & System Co. disclosed in October last year the signing of a stock call option contract with KT and KT Submarine, and it exercised the option in April this year.

The contract allows LS Cable to purchase 6,290,000 shares of KT Submarine at 7,134 won ($5.51) per share. Currently, based on the previous day's closing price, KT Submarine's per-share price stands at 13,810 won ($10.66). LS Cable will pay on August 16 the acquisition amount to KT and is set to become the largest shareholder of KT Submarine, holding 43.9% of its shares.

With KT Submarine handling undersea cable construction and LS Cable responsible for undersea cable and material production, both companies expect synergies through vertical integration of their businesses. As the domestic and international offshore wind power industry grows, there are expectations for KT Submarine's turnaround in performance.

In the second quarter of this year, KT Submarine recorded sales of 17.9 billion won ($13.8 million) and operating profit of 5.5 billion won ($4.2 million). This represents a 60% increase in sales compared to the same period last year, and the company achieved a turnaround to the black.

Write to Mi-Sun Kang at misunny@hankyung.com