A tough bidding war for Kumho Industrial, the de facto holding company of Kumho Asiana Group, is set to begin this month.

The state-run Korea Development Bank and other creditors of Kumho Industrial sent an information memorandum to major conglomerates and financial investors on Jan. 15 on the selloff of their 57.5 percent stake in the company, after a debt workout program was completed last month.

“The memo on the takeover was sent to the top 100 domestic companies and major private equity funds,” an official at one of the creditors said. “We plan to sell the entire stake in the firm in the first half of this year.”

The creditors plans to officially announce the start of the bid by the end of January. 

A handful of domestic companies and investors are eyeing the acquisition of Kumho Industrial, which owns key affiliates of Kumho Asiana Group, including the country’s second-biggest air carrier Asiana Airlines. The builder holds a 30.1 percent stake in the carrier.

The market value of Kumho Industrial is estimated around 420 billion won ($389 million). But when its premium on business control over Asiana Airlines is added, the cost of acquisition is expected to soar to anywhere from 600 billion won to 1 trillion won, market watchers said.

Kumho Asiana Group chairman Park Sam-koo seems to have the upper hand in the bidding process as he has a pre-emptive right to buy the stake in Kumho Industrial. If he wins the deal, he will retake control of the entire group.

Park, however, is short on funds to buy out Kumho Industrial after injecting his cash into the group’s flagship units ― Kumho Tire and Kumho Industrial ― to save them amid a workout crisis in 2012.

The country’s big three retail enterprises ― Lotte, Shinsegae and CJ ― are reportedly mulling to participate in the acquisition bid as they have sufficient cash flow. Some of them are internally considering entering the aviation industry.

Kumho Asiana has been financially burdened since its 2006 acquisition of Daewoo Engineering & Construction as it agreed to buy its shares held by financial investors for far more than the market price.

Hoban Construction, the largest shareholder of Kumho Industrial with a 6.16 percent stake, except creditors’ is also considered to be one of the most powerful candidates to take ownership in the group when it finds a financial investor for joint-funding.

By Park Han-na (hnpark@heraldcorp.com)