NAIROBI, Kenya – The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has endorsed the sale of Holcim’s 41.7 per cent stake in East African Portland Cement Company (EAPCC) to Kalahari Holdings, saying the transaction does not amount to a takeover.
Appearing before Parliament’s Trade and Investment Committee, Joel Omari, Director of Competition and Consumer Protection, told MPs that the deal does not change control of the cement maker and therefore raises no regulatory concerns about market dominance.
“The 41.7 per cent shareholding will not result in acquisition of control and additionally, the shares do not confer any veto rights that would amount to any indirect control,” Omari said. “Therefore, the proposed transaction in our view does not amount to a merger as provided for under section 41.”
CAK said it conducted a comprehensive review, examining whether the move would create monopolistic behaviour, distort competition, or undermine consumer welfare.
The analysis also factored in cement production, supply-demand patterns, and import-export dynamics.
Even so, MPs expressed unease over the wider implications of the deal. Committee vice chair Mary Anne Keitany (Aldai) warned that the transfer could lead to job cuts and weaken EAPCC’s competitiveness.
Taveta MP John Bwire pressed for a full market analysis, questioning available data on market shares.
“The source of your estimates that you are saying, Mombasa controls 33 per cent of the entire cement market in Kenya, I question it myself,” he said.
The Holcim-Kalahari deal comes at a time of heightened scrutiny in Kenya’s cement sector, where competition, pricing and employment remain politically sensitive issues.
