The 10 vessels being sold are ships deployed under long-term cargo transportation contracts with major domestic shippers. These contracts will also be transferred to Pan Ocean. SK Shipping plans to invest approximately 1 trillion won secured from this transaction into acquiring new growth drivers.

Previously, Hahn & Co invested 1.5 trillion won in 2018 to acquire management control of SK Shipping. Since then, the company has improved its business structure by shifting away from spot business, which is sensitive to freight rate fluctuations, toward stable long-term contracts. Long-term contracts operate on a structure that adds a fixed margin to operating costs, enabling stable profit generation regardless of market conditions. Additionally, the company has secured additional high-quality shippers both domestically and internationally, including signing a long-term transportation contract with QatarEnergy, the world’s largest LNG producer, and expanded its eco-friendly vessel fleet.

Operating profit, which stood at 73.3 billion won in 2018 at the time of acquisition, rose to 395.7 billion won as of 2024. During the same period, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) also grew 2.8 times from 231.7 billion won to 640.9 billion won

Source: BusinessKorea