SK E&S issues convertible preferred shares worth $576 million through KKR

SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean energy company SK E&S said on Thursday it plans to issue new redeemable convertible preferred shares (RCPS) worth 735 billion won ($576 million) through global investment firm KKR & Co Inc.

The transaction will be KKR’s second investment in the company via the RCPS structure, following an initial 2.4 trillion won investment in November 2021.

SK E&S is looking to de-leverage and capture post-pandemic opportunities after using KKR’s initial investment to accelerate its growth and transformation into a global clean energy provider, KKR said in a separate statement.

Established in 1999, SK E&S, a unit of conglomerate SK Group, engages in a range of businesses, including overseas gas field development, power generation, district energy, and city gas.

KKR’s latest investment will be from its infrastructure-focused funds in Asia Pacific, it said.

($1 = 1,276.2100 won)

(Reporting by Heekyong Yang and Kane Wu; editing by Christian Schmollinger and Jason Neely)