Samho and Goryeo Development Merge... Reborn as 'Daelim Construction'

[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] Samho and Goryeo Development, construction affiliates of Daelim Group, are merging to be reborn as 'Daelim Construction.'

Daelim Group announced that Samho and Goryeo Development each held board meetings on the 27th and resolved to merge. The merger ratio between Samho and Goryeo Development is 1 to 0.451. Last year, Samho's sales and assets were 1.2799 trillion KRW and 851.7 billion KRW, respectively. Goryeo Development's sales and assets were 684.9 billion KRW and 613.4 billion KRW, which are smaller than Samho's.

Daelim Group explained, "We plan to hold an extraordinary shareholders' meeting in May and finalize the merger process by July 1," adding, "The merger was promoted to proactively respond to changes in the construction market environment and to focus on fostering the developer business as a new growth engine for the group."

This is interpreted as an intention to strengthen competitiveness centered on the core businesses of the two companies and to combine expertise to become a construction company that can cover everything from planning to construction.

Currently, Daelim Group is promoting various developer projects in petrochemicals, energy, and social overhead capital (SOC) sectors worldwide based on its competitiveness in petrochemical and construction businesses. A Daelim Group official said, "Daelim Industrial and Daelim Construction will complement each other and sometimes create synergy through healthy competition," adding, "We expect to secure the status of a more competitive large construction company."

Daelim Group expects Daelim Construction to enter the mid-sized construction company category ranked 16th in this year's construction capacity evaluation. They also added that through profit growth by pioneering new markets, Daelim Construction aims to enter the top 10 in operating profit by 2025.

Founded in 1956, Samho ranks 30th in construction capacity evaluation and has strengths in the housing sector, having conducted various housing projects in the Gangnam area, including Samho Garden in the 1970s. Recently, it has been recognized for its construction capabilities across the entire architectural business, including automobile sales centers and hotels.

Founded in 1965, Goryeo Development ranks 54th in construction capacity evaluation. It specializes in civil engineering fields such as highways, high-speed railroads, bridges, and ports, and is one of the few mid-sized construction companies with a track record as a lead company in private SOC projects.