Korean robot and space firms debut on stock market in H2

Doosan Robotics Inc.’s collaborative robots. [Courtesy of Doosan]

A wave of South Korean robot manufacturers and aerospace industries are preparing to make their debut on the stock market, as these sectors emerge as new growth engines for the nation’s economy. Among the spotlighted companies is Doosan Robotics Inc., the robotics unit of Doosan Group, which is poised for an IPO in the second half of this year, providing a crucial indicator for the future market trajectory after an IPO freeze among large company affiliates.

In June, Doosan Robotics filed a preliminary listing review with the Korea Exchange, and multiple sources from investment banks on Thursday said the review result will be released this month, which could allow the company to start an IPO process. The lead IPO managers are Mirae Asset Securities Co. and Korea Investment & Securities Co.

Doosan Robotics holds a prominent position in the realm of collaborative robots, which are seen as a central pillar of future manufacturing. As the largest producer of collaborative robots in South Korea, the company boasts an estimated corporate value exceeding 1 trillion won ($769.2 million). Market observers eagerly anticipate whether this upcoming IPO will achieve a successful listing of a conglomerate affiliate, following the landmark IPO of LG Energy Solution Ltd. in January last year.

“The IPO market has been lackluster, with recent plans for conglomerate affiliate IPOs being canceled due to weak forecasts,” said an unnamed source from a brokerage firm. “The success of Doosan Robotics could potentially trigger a wave of IPOs in the market.”

Concurrently, the aerospace industry is also witnessing a surge in IPO interest, with several startups seeking to raise funds through going public.

The trend has been kicked off by Contec, a provider of space ground station services responsible for transmitting and receiving data from satellites. Ground stations play a crucial role in controlling satellites and capturing their signals, without which satellites cannot effectively fulfill their functions. With the rising number of small civilian satellites serving various purposes, the significance of such ground stations is becoming increasingly prominent.

After filing a preliminary listing review in June, Contec is expected to go public later this year. The lead IPO manager is Daeshin Securities Co.

Perigee Aerospace, a manufacturer of small-sized rockets, is also poised for an IPO next year. In a pre-IPO round that began earlier this year, the company is assumed to have a corporate value of 130 billion won. Perigee Aerospace specializes in developing small-sized rockets powered by methane-based liquid fuel and spacecraft attitude control technology necessary to reuse rockets. Following a series of successful pilot launches for its vehicles, the company will perform the country’s first offshore launch later this year.

Later this year, Lumir Inc. is expected to apply for a preliminary review to be listed on the Kosdaq. The company specializes in developing miniaturized satellites that can be transported on launch vehicles. One of its notable achievements includes the Lumir-T1, a cube satellite for space radiation detection, which was launched aboard the Nuri rocket.

The driving force behind a slew of IPOs in private aerospace developers involves the growing presence of the aerospace industry in the economy. In addition, the successful launch of Nuri in May served as a catalyst for rapid growth in the sector.

“The space industry is a future industry, and even private companies, as well as the government, are intensively fostering it, so it is important for companies to enter the market early and gain an advantage in competition,” said Na Yoo-seok, managing director of IPO at Daeshin Securities.