A number of South Korean construction and energy companies have expressed interest in buying Dongbu Power Dangjin Corp. after talks to sell it to steelmaker POSCO fell through, industry sources said Friday.

According to market watchers, Daewoo Engineering and Construction, one of the country’s largest builders, Daelim Industrial, GS Electric Power & Services and SK Gas have all submitted letters of intent to buy Dongbu Power or acquire stakes in the company.

The power plant located in Dangjin, some 123 kilometers south of Seoul, has been put up for sale to help Dongbu Group, its parent conglomerate, shore up cash against its mounting debt problems.

Dongbu is said to have initially wanted 1 trillion won ($984.5 billion) for the plant. Creditors of the group, such as Korea Development Bank, agreed earlier in the month to give the country’s 18th-largest conglomerate more breathing room to sort out its problems. (Yonhap)