Electrolux may be behind your next Daewoo purchase.
Electrolux is interested in buying Daewoo Electronics Corp. should the takeover of the bankrupt South Korean appliance maker by an Iranian rival fall through, Chief Executive Officer Keith McLoughlin said.
According to businessweek.com, creditors of Daewoo Electronics last year agreed to an offer from Entekhab Industrial Group over a competing one from Electrolux. Lenders have since extended the deadline for Entekhab to pay the 471.5 billion won ($420 million) price tag until April 7. Daewoo Electronics had sales of 1.13 trillion won in 2009, according to the latest available regulatory filing.
“If they come back to us, we’ll certainly talk to them,” McLoughlin said in a Feb. 17 interview at the Stockholm-based company’s headquarters. “They knew we were interested, and we’re still interested. If the phone rings, we’ll answer it.”
McLoughlin, who took the helm at the world’s second-biggest home appliance maker at the start of this year, said talks are under way with “more than a couple” potential takeover targets. These may include companies that make air conditioners and other “adjacent products” to Electrolux’s vacuum cleaners, washing machines and refrigerators, he said.