Ssangyong Engineering & Construction will continue to operate under the government after the state-run Korea Asset Management Corp. failed several times to find a new owner for the ailing firm.

As ministers agreed on a law revision on assets belonging to the state at a recent Cabinet meeting, the government is entitled to own Ssangyong E&C over the coming years even if the sale process led by KAMCO fails again.

Under the initial law, KAMCO was banned from holding its stake in Ssangyong E&C after 2012.

With the revision, KAMCO is now allowed sufficient time to carry out the sale process. Even if the state-owned agency still fails to find a preferred investor within three months, public agencies like the Public Fund Oversight Committee will have the right to manage assets of the ailing firm.

In the wake of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Ssangyong E&C fell into deep financial distress under mounting debts. KAMCO and other creditors injected bailout funds to rescue the builder.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)