Chairman Park Jung-won of Doosan Group.

The profits of Doosan Group’s affiliates recovered last year, despite the general downturn sweeping across the world. The group has been trying to maintain its upward spiral in operation to seek new growth engines with its solid financial structures as the base.

Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction, for example, has settled its position as a global mover in such areas EPC, based on the technological prowess it has built over the years. 

The company kicked off the new year by securing an order for a thermal power construction project in Indonesia in February and ended the year by getting a huge order to build two thermal power plants in the Uttar Pradesh State in northern India worth 2.8 trillion won.

Last year, the heavy industrial company ended the year with an order in Saudi Arabia, which put it over 9 trillion won in total project orders overseas.

The company also acquired One Energy System, a source of basic software technology in the United States, to possess a top-level technology in the industry.

Doosan Bobcat, which consummated its first IPO successfully last year, stands to benefit from the Trump presidency in the U.S., due to its large pool of construction technology. The company stands to benefit if the Trump administration kicks off its huge infrastructural projects across the U.S., estimated at several trillion dollars in value, as promised during the presidential campaign.

Doosan plans to focus on high-tech R&D activities. Doosan Infracore set up an R&D facility in Inchoen to centralize all of its R&D personnel.

Doosan Bobcat opened two R&D centers in North Dakota in 2014 to focus on the development of new construction equipment technologies. By centralizing R&D, it’s expected that development times of new technology will be reduced

Doosan Group carried personnel reshuffles in the areas of power generation equipment production to boost synergy in the sector with Doosan Bobcat for boiler technology; Doosan Scoda Power for turbines; and power generation technology, to take charge of given power technology sectors.

About 30 million shares owned by its shareholders, including Doosan Infracore Co. and Doosan Engine Co., will be sold at a price range between 29,000 won and 33,000 won, the company said in a regulatory filing. Listing is due Nov. 18. The company had earlier proposed to raise as much as 2.45 trillion won, selling 49 million shares at 41,000 won to 50,000 won apiece. 

Doosan Bobcat withdrew its original offer, which would have been the country’s biggest IPO in more than six years, after failing to lure investor interest. The benchmark Kospi index has moved in a narrow band over the past five years, making investors wary of valuations of companies listing on the market. While the South Korean firm cut the size, TI Fluid Systems Ltd., the automotive company owned by Bain Capital, scrapped its planned London IPO Thursday amid weak reception for such deals.

The share sale by Doosan Bobcat will help raise as much as 450 billion won for the Doosan Group, according to the statement. The shares that the group units aren’t selling in the IPO could be used as a source of financing after Doosan Bobcat’s listing, Doosan Infracore said in an e-mail, without elaborating.

A view of Doosan Group’s Incheon Global R&D Center in Incheon.(Photos: Doosan Group)