South Korea’s largest private equity firm Hahn & Co has acquired 85% of SK Specialty – the world’s largest producer of specialty gases for the semiconductor and advanced display industries – for 2.6 trillion South Korean won ( US$1.77 billion ), with the SK Group retaining a 15% stake in the company.

SK Specialty is the global leader in the production of nitrogen trifluoride, tungsten hexafluoride and other specialty gases, such as silane products, which are essential raw materials in the manufacturing of semiconductors and advanced display panels.

The company supplies it products to global semiconductor and display manufacturers, including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and other multinational customers.

This transaction further builds on Hahn & Co’s track record, it says, of successfully acquiring Korean businesses that serve globally competitive industries and represents its 37th acquisition in the country with transaction value in excess of US$31 billion.

Scott Sang-Won Hahn, the company’s CEO, adds: “We are ready to expand SK Specialty’s position in the global semiconductor supply chain.”