National Cement pays $85m to take over Cimerwa

PPC International Holdings Proprietary Ltd, owned a 51 percent stake, while the remaining 49 percent was distributed among minority shareholders, including Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB), Agaciro Development Fund, Rwanda Investment Group and Sonarwa General Insurance Company Holdings Ltd.

Narendra Raval, Devki Group chairman, pledged to plough up to $60 million into Cimerwa, Rwanda’s oldest cement maker, in a bid to revamp and scale operations, as well as increasing efficiencies.

“But more important is to reduce the price of cement, so that every Rwandan can afford to build houses,” Mr Raval said.

He said the overarching target is to offset importation of cement from the region, with plans of exporting the surplus.