Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc plans to take a position as much as $1 billion over the following 4 years in an growth and restructuring drive.
The funding is a fine addition to President Bola Tinubu’s reform efforts.
Flour Mills will make investments not less than $500 million in its sugar operations in Niger state to scale manufacturing to greater than 400,000 tons a 12 months from the present 1000 tons.
Flour Mills of Nigeria growth
Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, the nation’s greatest milling firm, plans to take a position as much as $1 billion over the following 4 years in an growth and restructuring drive after its majority shareholder provided to denationalise it.
This important funding will deal with boosting manufacturing capability and exploring new markets throughout Africa whereas leveraging the African Continental Free Commerce Space (AfCFTA). In accordance with the corporate’s Chairman, John Coumantaros, this new funding is about doubling funding in Nigeria.
The funding is a fine addition to President Bola Tinubu’s reform efforts when some companies like Unilever Plc and Diageo Plc are decreasing their publicity or exiting the West African nation. Since ascending to energy in Might 2023, President Tinubu has unleashed a flurry of reforms, from floating the naira to firming down on gas subsidies, to make the nation extra interesting to buyers and rescue it from the brink of fiscal disaster.
Flour Mills will make investments not less than $500 million in its sugar operations in Niger state to scale manufacturing to greater than 400,000 tons a 12 months, from the present 1000 tons, in line with Coumantaros. A further $100 million will go to constructing a cassava-processing manufacturing facility to halt cassava starch imports into the nation, with its breakfast cereal providing additionally being expanded.
The 64-year-old milling firm will likely be restructured after Excelsior Delivery Firm Ltd. final month provided to purchase out minorities at 70 nairas a share.
Coumantaros mentioned it intends to restructure its greater than 22 items into 5 corporations. “We would like to have the ability to entice companions — technical and monetary companions — to assist us develop our sugar operations and our meals enterprise. We have now lots of bold plans for funding and growth.”
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Inner funding
“The requirement for capital goes to be very, very massive. And, in fact, we will likely be backing most of that,” he mentioned. “However while you develop, you’ll be able to’t do the whole lot your self. You must invite these specialists of the very best within the area to assist you and help you and produce a few of that technical experience so we will develop extra enterprise, extra jobs right here within the nation.”
The corporate additionally seems to be to broaden throughout Africa, beginning in West Africa, leveraging on the African Continental Free Commerce Space — the most important single market by space for the reason that formation of the World Commerce Group.
“With the inception of the AfCFTA, we strongly consider that we shouldn’t simply be wanting on the Nigerian market,” the chairman mentioned. “Our dream is to have a pan-African meals enterprise headquartered in Nigeria. We’ll use the AfCFTA to broaden our footprint into these areas.”
Coumantaros sees the corporate relisting after its repositionings.
“It’s our aspiration that we come again,” and “we record in Nigeria, maybe a twin itemizing as a pan-African meals enterprise or a pan-African agro-allied enterprise,” he mentioned. “We consider there’s a essential position for the Nigerian Inventory Alternate to play in our future, however we have to reorganize, retool, recapitalize, refocus in order that we’re in that place.”
