LAFARGE FAILS TO STOP COURT FROM HEARING CASE AGAINST PLANNED SALE TO CHINESE COMPANY

The hassle by Lafarge Africa Plc to halt proceedings within the swimsuit instituted towards its plan to promote 83% of its shares to a international firm in China has been rejected by the court docket.

Justice Lewis Allagoa  of the Federal Excessive Courtroom in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Thursday rejected the movement by Lafarge difficult the court docket’s jurisdiction to listen to a swimsuit introduced towards it by a Nigerian firm and minority Shareholder within the cement agency, Strategic Consultancy Restricted.

Lafarge, which is listed on the Nigerian Trade, acquired 83 p.c of the full shares of three federal government-owned cement firms throughout the privatisation workout routines of 2001 and 2002. The corporate had knowledgeable the Safety and Trade Fee of an inside restructuring by Holcim Group, the Swiss agency that holds 83.81 p.c of Lafarge Africa’s issued share capital.

Strategic Consultancy sued Lafarge, Holcim Group, Nigerian Trade Restricted, and the Central Securities Clearing System searching for to cease the deliberate sale of Lafarge to Huaxin Cement Restricted, a international firm based mostly in China.

The motion was instituted based mostly on the next: The sale was completed  surreptitiously with out  affording Strategic Consultancy Restricted and the opposite minority shareholders the chance to amass the shares; The purported sale to a international firm that isn’t registered in Nigeria runs foul of laws and statutes such because the Firms & Allied Issues Act, 2020,  the Securities & Trade Act and the Nigeria Funding Promotions Act on the appropriate of minority shareholders and prohibition of transactions with unregistered international entities.

In a ruling delivered on Thursday, Could 15, Justice Lewis Allagoa, after listening to the submissions of Dr D.A. Awosika (SAN)  counsel for the Plaintiff and  Babatunde Fagbohunlu (SAN) counsel for the 1^st defendant and Uzoma Azikiwe (SAN) Counsel for the second defendant, dismissed the preliminary objection by the defence staff that the court docket lacked jurisdiction to entertain the swimsuit. “The 1^st and a pair of^nd defendants’ movement objecting to the Courtroom’s jurisdiction is hereby dismissed”, Justice Allagoa dominated.

The choose additionally ordered that Caricement BV, Netherlands, and Related Worldwide Cements Ltd, England, which the respondents claimed owned the shares be joined as 5^th and 6^th Defendants respectively.

On the third ruling, Justice Allagoa granted the prayer of the prosecution counsel for depart to serve the 2 new events court docket proceedings outdoors of jurisdiction. “It’s hereby ordered that the individuals sought to be joined herein and hereby joined as prayed and depart to problem and serve the Originating Summons out of jurisdiction is hereby granted” he said.

The matter was adjourned to June 11, 2025, for continuation of proceedings.