With a target to deliver savings of 1.4 billion Euros ($1.54 billion) within three years, LafargeHolcim, the company formed by the recent merger between Holcim and Lafarge, has unveiled plans to consolidate its operations in Nigeria within the shortest period.
Indeed, the $40billion merger of the Lafarge Group of France and Swiss company, Holcim, would see the new entity synergising its operations in United Cement Company of Nigeria (UniCem), Ashaka Cement and WAPCO in a bid to increase its foothold in the country and address needs of specific markets.
To drive its agenda, LafargeHolcim has appointed its Area Manager, Nigeria and West Africa, Peter Hoddinott, to take over the management of Lafarge Africa Plc from the company’s outgoing Chief Executive Officer, Guillaume Roux.
The new company, with a combined global capacity of 386 million tonnes per a year, aims to shift focus to faster growing emerging markets in Africa and Asia where cement demand is booming.
According to Hoddinott, while announcing the successful completion of the merger between the two companies in Lagos, the union of Lafarge and Holcim marked a milestone in the company’s commitment to providing best cement, concrete and aggregates products to the local market, adding that the brands would remain the same
Roux added that the merger would have a positive impact on the ongoing consolidation of the Nigerian operations.
He said: “Under Lafarge Africa Plc, United Cement Company of Nigeria, a joint venture between Lafarge and Holcim in Cross River State, will now join the other operations, which include AshakaCem in Gombe, Atlas terminal in Rivers, WAPCO operations in Ogun, as well as its aggregates and Readymix sites across the country as a member of LafargeHolcim Nigeria.
“The new group will now work towards creating the highest performing company in the building materials industry,” Roux added.
The firm noted on Thursday that its Nigerian subsidiary would still be known as Lafarge Africa Plc and would continue to play key roles in national development by leveraging LafargeHolcim Group’s technicalities in the production of building solutions.
Hoddinott said the merger would create a stronger company that would make more solid investment in the country.
“We will be better able to assist in delivering more affordable housing as well as support for socio-economic progress through corporate social responsibilities,” he said.
According to him, both companies came together because they had similar market capitalisation and strategies, while the new group has over 115,000 employees and operates in 90 countries.
LafargeHolcim Ltd was launched after making its debut on the Swiss and Paris stock exchanges last week, and has a market capitalisation of about 41 billion Swiss francs.
The merger created a company with combined sales of 33 billion francs and operations in 90 countries.
With about 60 per cent of the new firm’s 2014 pro forma sales coming from emerging markets including Nigeria, Hoddinott explained that Nigeria accounted for about four per cent of the volume with expectations to increase the country’s contributions under the new entity.
