Brookfield Asset Management, Stonepeak, and Air Liquide have been shortlisted by Macquarie Asset Management for the final bidding round in the sale of South Korean industrial gas producer DIG Airgas, according to a report by Reuters citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
Binding offers for the Seoul-headquartered company — South Korea’s third-largest industrial gas provider — are expected by late July or early August with the deal expected to be valued at up to $3.6bn, marking a potential record investment in the country for either Brookfield or Stonepeak.
Macquarie, which acquired DIG Airgas (formerly Dausung Industrial Gases) from MBK Partners in 2019 for around $1.85bn, is reportedly targeting a sale valuation of 18-20x EBITDA. DIG Airgas currently generates $170m to $180m in annual EBITDA.
Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan are advising Macquarie on the process. All parties reportedly declined to comment.
If successful, the transaction would expand Brookfield’s South Korean footprint beyond its 2022 acquisition of SK Airplus, a key gas supplier to SK Hynix. For Stonepeak, which currently lacks a gases portfolio in Asia, the deal would represent a major strategic entry. Paris-based Air Liquide, already active in Korea since 1996, would be reinforcing its industrial gas supply chain across the region.
