SEOUL, December 11 (AJP) - Doosan Group has halted its ambitious corporate restructuring plan, citing recent market volatility that has sent its stock prices plummeting. The conglomerate had intended to split Doosan Bobcat from Doosan Enerbility and fold it into a subsidiary of Doosan Robotics.
The proposed reorganization aimed to streamline the group's portfolio into three main sectors: clean energy (Doosan Enerbility, Doosan Fuel Cell), smart machines (Doosan Robotics, Doosan Bobcat), and semiconductors and advanced materials (Doosan Tesna). However, the plan faced opposition from minority shareholders and mixed reviews from financial advisors.
A key hurdle was the conditional approval from the National Pension Service, South Korea's largest pension fund. The NPS required Doosan Enerbility's stock price to exceed 20,890 won ($16) on the day of the shareholder vote, a condition that became increasingly difficult to meet as the stock price declined.
"We decided to cancel the meeting as we anticipated more shareholders would vote against the merger due to the recent stock price drop," a Doosan Group official said.
Doosan Enerbility stated that the company would need "considerable time" to review internal and external factors before making any further announcements.
Industry analysts suggest that Doosan Group may still pursue restructuring efforts, particularly around Doosan Robotics, which is seen as a key growth area. The group successfully completed a debt restructuring program in 2022.