Investment in Secondary Battery and Semiconductor Materials
Targeting 1 Trillion KRW in Sales by 2028
EcoPro Group's environmental business affiliate, EcoPro HN, announced on the 5th that it has decided to conduct a paid-in capital increase worth 200 billion KRW to advance its existing environmental business and expand into secondary battery and semiconductor materials.
Exterior view of the headquarters of Ecopro HN located in Ochang, Cheongju, Chungbuk [Photo by Ecopro HN]
EcoPro HN disclosed this information after the market closed the previous day, explaining that the purpose of the fund raising is 170 billion KRW for facility funds and 30.1 billion KRW for operating funds.
EcoPro HN will proceed with this paid-in capital increase through a rights offering followed by a general public subscription for any unsubscribed shares. The number of shares to be issued is 5.67 million, with a planned issue price of 35,300 KRW per share. The scale of the capital increase and the issue price will be finalized on December 2 of this year, and the new shares are scheduled to be listed on December 26. Typically, capital increases through public subscription increase the number of shares, which can increase the financial burden on existing shareholders and dilute equity value, thus being considered negative news.
EcoPro HN plans to invest a total of 90 billion KRW in the secondary battery materials and semiconductor materials sectors. For the secondary battery business, 60 billion KRW will be invested in the development and production of electrolyte additives, crucibles, and dopant-related technologies. For the semiconductor materials business, 30 billion KRW will be invested focusing on the development of advanced packaging technologies to respond to the fine process materials and high-performance semiconductor chip markets.
Detailed Table of Fund Usage Purpose Related to EcoPro HN's Paid-in Capital Increase [Image Source=EcoPro HN]
It will also invest 60 billion KRW in the environmental business and carbon reduction sectors. Of this, 40 billion KRW will be used for next-generation catalyst production facilities, and 20 billion KRW for the chemical filter business. The largest shareholder, EcoPro, plans to participate in the capital increase subscription at 120%, and the final subscription quantity will be determined through a board resolution.
Kim Jong-seop, CEO of EcoPro HN, stated, "We will strengthen our technological capabilities and competitiveness to achieve sales of 1 trillion KRW by 2028."
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