Daelim in Talks to Buy Out Marubeni’s Stake in Australia Power Plant

South Korea’s Daelim Industrial Co. is in exclusive talks to buy a 30% stake in an Australian power station owned by Japanese trading house Marubeni Corp., a person familiar with the matter said Tuesday.

The move by Marubeni to find a buyer for its interest in the Millmerran power station in Queensland state was first reported by The Wall Street Journal in February. A deal is expected to be agreed within the next month. Millmerran, which generated its first electricity in 2003, has 850 MW of capacity and supplies power to around 1.1 million homes. The power plant and nearby Commodore coal mine cost 1.5 billion Australian dollars (US$1.4 billion) to develop, which gives Marubeni’s stake an enterprise value of A$450 million including debt.

The move comes as Marubeni reshuffles its portfolio of global assets.

On Monday, Marubeni said it wouldn’t purchase Gavilon Holdings LLC’s energy business as part of its takeover of the U.S. grain merchant. The decision lowered the acquisition price for Gavilon by US$1 billion. Earlier this month, Marubeni agreed to buy a 15% stake in New York-listed Aircastle Ltd., which acquires and leases commercial jets to airlines.