en.Wedoany.com Reported - South Korean company APS announced the acquisition of UPIA for 18 billion won in cash, entering the transformer manufacturing equipment market with a target of achieving 50 billion won in UPIA sales by 2030. Against the backdrop of persistent bottlenecks in transformer manufacturing equipment due to expanded investment in AI data centers and power grids, APS aims to pursue both growth and profitability in the manufacturing equipment sector through this acquisition.
UPIA is South Korea's sole specialized supplier of core equipment for transformer manufacturing, with 2025 sales of 9.543 billion won, net profit of 2.042 billion won, and a net profit margin of approximately 21.4%. The company's performance has shown an improving trend over the past three years, with 2023 sales of 3.597 billion won and net profit of 423 million won, 2024 sales increasing to 9.979 billion won and net profit of 1.721 billion won, and net profit margin rising from 11.8% in 2023 to 17.2% in 2024, further climbing to 21.4% in 2025.
In terms of transaction details, APS acquired 30,000 shares of UPIA stock for 18 billion won in cash, achieving a 100% stake. The scheduled acquisition date is the 31st, with the purpose of portfolio diversification. UPIA has a capital of 150 million won, with a total of 30,000 issued shares. As of the end of 2025, its total assets stood at 14.052 billion won, total liabilities at 4.042 billion won, and total equity at 10.009 billion won.
UPIA's main products include Core Cut To Length (CTL) equipment, Foil Coil Winding Machines, E Stacking Robot Systems, and Slitting Machines. Among these, CTL equipment is used for precision cutting of transformer core materials, winding equipment for coil winding, and stacking robot systems for automated core lamination production.
Market context shows that the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that, driven by the expansion of AI, virtual asset data centers, and electrification trends, U.S. electricity consumption will reach 4.269 trillion kWh in 2026 and 4.399 trillion kWh in 2027, setting new historical records. Data from grid operator PJM Interconnection indicates that capacity costs in its jurisdiction have risen by over 1000% due to data center demand outpacing supply growth. Power infrastructure investment is expanding toward dedicated power generation and transmission equipment for data centers. For example, UK's National Grid acquired a 35% stake in U.S. data center power infrastructure platform Joulent for $1.75 billion, with the first project set to build a 2.67 GW gas-fired power facility in Texas to supply power to Microsoft's data centers for 20 years.
APS plans to maintain UPIA's CTL equipment sales base while expanding the proportion of high-value-added products such as E Stacking Robots and automated winding equipment. It also intends to leverage the technological expertise of group subsidiaries—AP System, Nextin, APS Innovation, and Konic Automation—in design, manufacturing, and industrial control software to enhance UPIA's equipment capabilities. An APS representative stated that the core equipment market requires high technical barriers and long-term experience accumulation, and the group will combine equipment and software capabilities to improve its transformer manufacturing solution supply capacity.
APS has set a target of achieving 50 billion won in UPIA sales by 2030. Based on 2025 sales of 9.543 billion won, this requires increasing sales approximately 5.2 times within five years. Whether this goal can be achieved will depend on the sustainability of global transformer expansion investments, growth in automated equipment orders, expansion of the overseas customer base, and the speed of technology integration within the APS group.
