Korean semiconductor packaging company Anam Semiconductor Inc’s board of directors have approved the sale of the company’s chip packaging plant in Kwanju to US semiconductor packaging and tester manufacturer Amkor Technology Inc. The price is expected to be in the region of $600m, but the exact amount is dependent on a field survey of the plant to be conducted by US investment bank SG Cowen, which has been retained by Amkor to be lead underwriter in raising the necessary funds on the US market. An agreement will be signed soon according to a company statement which said a special meeting will be convened to get the go ahead from shareholders. The sale is part of a general economic restructuring plan being forced through by government and creditor banks, following last year’s massive bailout by the International Monetary Fund, under which debt-laded Korean companies must improve their debt-to-equity ratios by selling off assets or attracting foreign investment. Anam Semiconductor, which owns four plants with a combined packaging capacity of 20 million units a month, will repay part of its debt from the proceeds of the sale.
