Displaying items by tag: Kigali Cement
ARM Cement looking for buyer of Kigali Cement plant
24 September 2018Rwanda: Kenya’s ARM Cement is set to auction off its Kigali Cement plant in Nyarugenge District for a second time, following a first attempt. The company forced a legal postponement to the first auction when offers for the unit failed to reach a level it deemed acceptable, according to the New Times newspaper. The only bid it received was for US$113,000 a figure significantly short of the estimate US$1.4m market value of the plant. Kigali Cement operates a 0.1Mt/yr plant.
Kigali Cement plant is being sold in order to pay its creditor, Rwanda Enterprise Investment Company (REIC) in a long running dispute between the companies. ARM Cement owns Kigali Cement but REIC has held shares in it since 2008. ARM Cement acquired a stake in Kigali Cement in 2010 and later took over the management of the company in 2014. Meanwhile, ARM Cement entered administration at home in Kenya in late August 2018.
ARM Cement acquires Kigali Cement
03 July 2014Kenya: Kenya's ARM Cement has completed the acquisition of Rwanda's Kigali Cement as it continues expanding its East African market.
ARM, which has held a 35% stake in the only privately-owned cement company in Rwanda since 2011, Kigali Cement, bought out the remaining 65% stake held by various shareholders to take complete control of the firm. The deal was finalised in April 2014. Kigali Cement, which had US$1.9m in net assets in 2013, has a cement production capacity of 100,000t/yr, which is expected to increase with further ARM investments.
"We finally acquired a 100% equity stake and full control of our Rwanda grinding plant," said ARM's chairman, Rick Ashley. He added that ARM also plans to increase its capacity and market share using its flagship brand, Rhino Cement.
The value of the deal was not disclosed, but it is estimated to cost over US$1.2m based on Kigali Cement's net asset value. The purchase will be financed by banks, according to Pradeep Paunrana, ARM's chief executive.
The acquisition is part of ARM's expansion plans, which seeks to improve sales in Rwanda and neighbouring markets. ARM will leverage on its new acquisition to expand its production and distribution network in East Africa. Ashley said that ARM will seek further measures to increase its market presence in Kenya, East Africa's largest economy, as well as Rwanda and Tanzania, completing ongoing projects and focusing on new markets in the region.
ARM is expected to commission Tanzania's Tanga plant, which holds a production capacity of 1.2Mt/yr of cement, in the fourth quarter of 2014. It will also start construction of its US$300m Kitui plant in Kenya in October 2014.