Samsung May Acquire Fokker

Samsung Aerospace Industries Ltd. has agreed to take over bankrupt Dutch aircraft maker Fokker NV for $150 million and invest an additional $600 million in the company, a newspaper reported Friday.

But Fokker’s receivers said no final decision has been made on a takeover of the company.

Maeil Business Newspaper, one of two major business dailies published in South Korea, said the agreement is awaiting approval from the Korean government and the Dutch parliament.

The paper said Samsung Aerospace plans to assemble Fokker-developed aircraft in both the Netherlands and South Korea.

A Samsung Aerospace spokesman would not confirm or deny the report, but said the investment figure seemed close.

Fokker shut down 90 percent of its operations and laid off 5,600 workers after its aircraft building operations went bankrupt in March. Its aircraft maintenance business was taken over by Dutch industrial group Stork NV in July.