When word came out that Amsons Group, a Tanzanian conglomerate, had offered a $182 million binding deal to take over Kenya’s Bamburi Cement, few people had an idea of the company and who owned it.
The offer is one of the biggest corporate takeovers in Kenya’s history, and if successful, it will see the delisting of the cement manufacturer. Amsons Group is a Tanzanian company that is interested in oil and gas, real estate, cereals, and cement.
Founded in 2016, the company has interests in Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mozambique. The acquisition will mark its official entry into Kenya, with plans to expand operations into other sectors.
Edha Nahdi is a name that might not ring a bell in the ears of many on the continent, but it is the brain behind the 18-year-old company. His meteoric rise to the top has seen him become one of the wealthiest men in Tanzania.
So how wealthy is Nahdi? His net worth is not public, but raising $182 million for a cross-border acquisition is something that very few companies on the African continent can achieve. The company claims to have an annual turnover of over $1 billion, making it one of the largest companies in Africa.
Amsons Group started as an importer of bulk oil and other petroleum products before diversifying in LPG, real estate, transportation, cement and cereals like wheat. Its products traded under the Camel brand: Camel Oil, Camel Flour, and Camel Cement. The company has 1,700 people on its payroll spread across the countries it operates.
Who is Nahdi?
A quick search online of Nahdi would yield very little information on who he is and where he came from. From a country known for showbiz and flamboyant billionaires, he has managed to keep a low profile and work in building one of the largest private companies in the East African region.
With operations spread across the region, it is safe to speculate that Nahdi could be a dollar billionaire, something he has been since 2006.
He began his business career in early 2006 at the age of 19, initially working as an importer of bulk oil and petroleum products under the Camel Oil Tanzania retail brand. The business later expanded into areas such as cement, inland container depots, real estate, and bulk grain storage.
Online records do not have a lot of details on Nahdi’s education, or personal or marriage life. However, the billionaire has several community philanthropic initiatives around education and healthcare.
He has numerous awards to his name including the 2015 African Young Business Leader of the Year.
Amsons’ Kenyan expansion
Under Nahdi’s leadership, Amsons Group has achieved steady profit growth and strengthened its business foundation in a challenging environment. The proposed acquisition of Bamburi Cement aligns with the group’s strategy to increase capacity and become a leading global player.
Bamburi Cement, a major player in East Africa’s cement industry, is partly owned by Kenyan industrialist Baloobhai Patel. Amsons Group aims to acquire all 362,959,275 ordinary shares of Bamburi for a total consideration of Ksh23.59 billion ($183.2 million).
This offer represents a 42.39 per cent premium over Bamburi’s closing share price of Ksh65 ($0.50) on July 9, 2024, the day the deal was announced, considering an anticipated special dividend.
The proposed deal may lead to Bamburi Cement being delisted from the Nairobi Securities Exchange. Shareholders are set to receive an additional Ksh20 ($0.15) per share upon exit, based on the closing price of Ksh45 ($0.34) per share on the day the potential acquisition was announced.
Amsons Group has indicated that if they receive acceptance for 75 per cent of the offer shares, they will consider whether Bamburi Cement should remain listed and may seek approval from the Capital Markets Authority to delist.
