Korean Harim reportedly wants to diversify and save on the cost of transporting grain from the US and Brazil with its own bulker arm. Price tag of Pan Ocean is estimated at between $757m to $946m.
Harim has estimated cash of KRW 240bn going into the auction, which Pan Ocean has called itself.
Korean media cite Hyundai Motor, steel company Posco, Korea Electric Power, CJ, SK, Daelim Industrial, Polaris Shipping and Sinokor Merchant Marine as potential bidders.
Interested parties will conduct due diligence from 10 November to 28 November, with binding offers due in by 11 December.
Buyers will be eyeing the fleet of 90 vessels, including an LNG carrier, two heavy deck cargo ships, a range of bulkers including seven massive Valemax ore carriers and 14 products tankers. It has four bulkers on order for delivery in 2016.
Pan Ocean was formerly owned by the troubled STX Group and filed for court receivership last June.
It sealed its rebirth last November with a huge $1.17bn debt-for-equity swap that saw lenders take over the company.
The owner logged a profit of $323.93m for the three months to the end of June, overturning the loss of $24.34m a year ago.