Hyundai Heavy Industries Group has announced that Kazakhstan authorities approved its plan with no strings attached. The company is currently undergoing a review of its merger plan in five countries including South Korea, EU, Japan, China and Singapore.

The group said it has been planned to submit an application to the European Commission in the coming weeks for review of the proposed takeover. The European Union is considered one of the toughest places to earn regulatory approval.

The EU is holding the key to the merger plan as it has the most developed competition law in the world.

In March 2019, Hyundai Heavy signed a formal deal which worth an estimated US$1.7 billion with the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB) to buy Daewoo Shipbuilding. Winning regulatory approval from domestic and foreign corporate regulators has been regarded as a key hurdle facing Hyundai Heavy’s efforts to complete the acquisition of Daewoo Shipbuilding.

If Hyundai Heavy Industries Group acquires DSME, its share in the LNG carrier market will surpass 50 percent, which is also a major concern.

Maritime Business World