S. Korean Court Mulls Sale of Hanjin
The South Korean bankruptcy court handling the insolvency proceedings of Hanjin Shipping Co. said Wednesday a sale of the troubled company is possible, say media reports. However, the court has yet to reach a decision.
"The sale of Hanjin is one of the options we're considering. If we conclude that it's the best way to rehabilitate the company, we'll do so, " Choi Ung-young, a judge and a spokesman for the Seoul Central District Court, said.
According to Bloomberg, the Seoul Central District Court has called for a meeting of officials who are evaluating the container line. The court thinks it’s important to start the process sooner rather than later, but the sale plan will depend on market conditions.
Hanjin, which filed for court receivership on Aug. 31, must submit a rehabilitation plan to the court in December.
The proposed sale of the entire company comes after an analyst said A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S’s container line could be interested in buying Hanjin Shipping and smaller rival Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., which is under creditor-led restructuring.
Hanjin Shipping, the country's biggest operator and the world's seventh largest in terms of capacity, filed for bankruptcy protection last month and is under court order to sell its own ships and returning chartered ships to their owners.
The company has a total of 97 container ships. Of that total, 60 were chartered and 37 owned by Hanjin.
