Forest of Dean advanced materials engineering group Versarien is selling the group's plant and equipment in South Korea.

Versarien has entered into an agreement with MCK Tech Co. Ltd to sell the group's plant and equipment in South Korea for a total consideration of £604,000, together with an exclusive licence agreement with MCK Tech for the use of five patents, owned by the group, for additional fees.

Versarien continues to pursue its stated turnaround strategy and an integral part of this strategy is to dispose of non‐core businesses and assets.

The plant and equipment acquired from Hanwha Aerospace in South Korea in 2020 were identified as non‐core and marketed for sale.

The group's mature businesses, AAC Cyroma Limited and Total Carbide Ltd, continue to be marketed for sale and the company is progressing discussions with a number of interested parties, though the timing of any further asset sales and the quantum of the funds that may be received remains uncertain.

Versarien says the net proceeds of the transaction will be used for the group's corporate and working capital purposes. The company continues to actively seek additional short and longer term funding solutions to support its turnaround strategy.

As at 31 March 2023, the date of Versarien's last notified balance sheet, the gross asset value of the Korean Plant was £844,151. Versarien Korea Ltd, which operated the Korean Plant, made a loss after tax of £771,690 in the 18 months to 30 September 2022.

Dr Stephen Hodge, CEO of Versarien, said: "As previously outlined, Versarien's strategy is to be a manufacturing‐light business in the UK and licence our patents, know‐how and other intellectual property to key partners.

"In line with this strategy we are pleased that we have secured the sale of the Korean CVD graphene production equipment and licensed five patents to MCK Tech. MCK Tech is a well‐respected company that has developed graphene‐based sensors for healthcare.

"MCK's CEO, Dr Seungmin Cho, is one of the pioneers of CVD graphene in Korea, formerly working as group leader at Samsung Techwin and Hanwha Aerospace, prior to founding MCK Tech in 2017, a joint venture with the Centre for Advanced Meta‐Materials (CAMM) in Daejeon.

"We look forward to maintaining access to CVD graphene materials and supporting MCK Tech through collaborative efforts."

Dr Seungmin Cho, CEO of MCK Tech, said: "Acquiring the CVD graphene production equipment is a strategic move to vertically integrate CVD graphene manufacturing and developing applications.

"As we are acquiring the heritage of Samsung Techwin and Hanwha Aerospace, we are building on their pioneering work to consolidate our position in the graphene industry. 

"Most of all, MCK Tech is pleased to establish a firm relationship with Versarien, a renowned graphene company, and is looking forward to collaborating in commercialising CVD graphene as well as graphene flakes in the years to come."