Solid Consortium Finalizes Process Of Taking Over Pantech…Will Try Again In Becoming A Legend In Venture Business

Solid-Optis Consortium has finally become the new owner of Pantech and drew the strands of keeping Pantech’s calling.

Seoul Central District Court’s Bankruptcy Department 3 held a meeting on the 16th for people who are related to Pantech with mortgagees and creditors in attendance and had approved Solid-Optis Consortium to take over Pantech.

The meeting had approved a method of dividing Pantech into a new corporation and an existing corporation and selling a new corporation to Consortium while Seoul Central District Court had approved Pantech’s planned proposal of revival.

Although liquidation process such as selling previous assets such as factories and others by an existing corporation is still left, legal process is practically over. After going into legal management in August of last year, Pantech’s many attempts in buyout process did not fall through.

Solid-Optis Consortium had prepared an additional operation fund by discussing with investors and is attempting to revive Pantech by focusing its business in Indonesia. It is currently discussing about working together with Indonesian mobile telecommunication businesses, distribution businesses, and political personnel and is planning to work on normalization as soon as possible by exchanging MOU so that it can build a joint-corporation in Indonesia soon.

Pantech had not been in a regular operation for more than a year and it seems that it will resume its business in first half of next year at the earliest. It also seems that Pantech’s new products will be shown even in South Korea next year, and Consortium has decided to draw the strands of keeping Pantech’s calling.

It has not been decided on a location where Pantech will produce its products. Even if it maintains part of its business in South Korea, there is a high possibility that it will produce products in foreign countries considering the fact that it is planning to produce and sell products in Indonesia and that Consortium will revive Pantech in a foreign country. There is also a possibility of outsourcing production using a specialized business.

“Because we are looking for others ways to promote South Korean industries rather than an economic structure where all of developing countries such as Indonesia, Africa and others are only importing products, it will be hard to maintain a business by only exporting finished products like in the past.” said CEO Jung Joon of Solid. “It will be best to develop Pantech as a business with technical skills and have partner companies in Indonesia to be responsible of everything else.”

Consortium is planning to start its business by focusing on medium and low-priced phones with competitive edge. By utilizing Pantech’s wireless telecommunication technologies, it will try to look for opportunities to grow in other areas such as IoT and others and Smartphones as well. It is expected that Consortium will create synergy with Solid’s telecommunication equipment business as well as repeater business.

Pantech, which had started as a venture company with 6 employees, was responsible of bringing up South Korea’s economy by making accumulated sales of $25.6 billion (29 trillion KRW) and accumulated export amount of $12.4 billion (14 trillion KRW) for the past 24 years. Industries are hoping that Pantech will succeed in reviving itself and bring back dreams and hopes again to small venture companies with technical skills and mindset of facing difficulties without any hesitation.

Staff Reporter An, Hochun | [email protected]