SEOUL, May 8 (Reuters) - HD Hyundai Marine Solution

shares closed up 97% versus their initial public

offering (IPO) price in the company's trading debut on

Wednesday, after a 742 billion won ($538 million) IPO, South

Korea's largest in two years.

The successful listing of the ship maintenance and repair

firm, backed by U.S. private equity giant KKR, paves the

way for other potential offerings to come to market. Sizeable

South Korean IPOs had dried up during much of 2023 on uncertain

market conditions.

HD Hyundai Marine Solution shares opened at 119,900 won and

closed at 163,900 won, up sharply from their issue price of

83,400 won which was at the top of its targeted valuation range.

As of Wednesday's close, its market valuation was about 7.3

trillion won.

Analysts said only about 10% of all shares being

available to trade on Wednesday helped to keep the price up.

Parent HD Hyundai, a South Korean

conglomerate involved in heavy industry and energy, remains the

largest shareholder with 56%, while No.2 shareholder KKR's 24%

stake was on a six-month lock-up.

The deal was the largest South Korean IPO since battery

maker LG Energy Solution raised $10.72 billion in

2022, according to Dealogic data.

Samsung Securities analyst Han Young-soo said HD Hyundai

Marine Solution was a rare stock that would immediately benefit

from stronger environmental regulations on ships.

"Emerging regulations on greenhouse gas emissions and

stronger standards over time are raising the prices of (ship

renovation) projects," he said. "Demand for LNG carrier

renovation is also on the rise."

The company reported a 201 billion won operating profit in

2023, up from 142 billion won the previous year. Its revenue

grew from 1.33 trillion won in 2022 to 1.43 trillion won in

2023.

South Korea had no listings during the first half of 2023

on the main KOSPI market, and only four listings in the

second half.

However, the four included successful listings by firms with

attractive long-term industry outlooks such as robot

manufacturer Doosan Robotics and battery materials

maker Ecopro Materials, encouraging companies with

similar outlooks to consider coming to market, analysts said.

South Korean firms considering IPOs include Viva Republica,

operator of mobile financial platform Toss, artificial

intelligence semiconductor startup FuriosaAI, and online bank

KBank, according to analysts.

($1 = 1,362.7600 won)