Shareholders resolve to delist Ashakacem from NSE

SHAREHOLDERS of AshakaCem Plc at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) held today at the Sheraton Hotel, Abuja passed resolutions proposed by the Board of Directors for a Voluntary Delisting of the Company from the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Following the EGM, shareholders of the Company will have a 90 days window as specified by NSE rules on voluntary delisting to decide on the exit plan on offer to shareholders.

As proposed by the Board of Directors and passed by shareholders at the EGM, shareholders may exit the Company within the regulatory 90 days’ period prior to the official delisting of the Company.

This could either be by trading their shares on The Floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange through their nominated Stockbroker; or receiving consideration from Lafarge Africa Plc in exchange for transferring their shares, on same terms as were for the Mandatory Tender Offer (MTO) and Voluntary Tender Offer (VTO).

The VTO is 57 new Lafarge Africa shares for 202 AshakaCem shares held as at the date of the Special Resolution approving the Voluntary Delisting; and a cash consideration of N2 per every AshakaCem exchanged.

Speaking after the EGM, the Vice-Chairman,Edith Onwuchekwa, who represented the Chairman, Alhaji Suleiman Yahyah, said “the Voluntary Delisting will not occasion loss of shares held by shareholders.

“As such shareholders may retain their membership in the unlisted Company if they so wish. Post the delisting, AshakaCem will continue to operate as a legal entity with its own board of directors”

Under the delisting and settlement of consideration, minority shareholders in AshakaCem will be offered benefits, including revenue diversification by geography as a result of Lafarge Africa’s operations in Nigeria, South Africa and Ghana.

This is in addition to revenue diversification by plant location due to wide spread operations across the North East, South East and South West regions of Nigeria.

It will be recalled that AshakaCem’s current free-float (tradable shares) at 15.03 per cent is in violation of the NSE listing rule of a minimum of 20 per cent.

Through the Voluntary Delisting, the Directors of the Company will be shielding the Company from any enforcement action or sanction that the Nigerian Stock Exchange may impose, for example by way of a mandatory Regulatory Delisting and potential reputational damage to the Company.