BUA Cement to sustain competitiveness with N115bn bond issuance
By Kayode Tokede
BUA Cement Plc has said it will sustain competitiveness with the N115 billion Series Fixed Rate Senior Unsecured Bond issue under the company’s maiden N200 billion bond issuance programme.
The Chief Executive Officer, BUA Cement, Yusuf Binji, made the disclosure at the digital closing gong ceremony to commemorate the bond issue organised by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Ltd., in Lagos on Tuesday.
Binji said the bond issue was part of the company’s growth strategies to access the debt capital market with the intent to raise long-term finance.
“Today marks another milestone on our journey to becoming the preferred manufacturer of cement in Nigeria and Africa in general.
“As part of our growth strategy, we took the deliberate decision to access the debt capital market with the intent to raise N100 billion, being the first tranche of our N200 billion programme.
“However, given the overwhelming response to the tune of over N130 billion and in accordance with the exchange’s rules and guidelines, we accepted N115 billion as the subscription amount.
“This clearly shows our viable business model and continued strong financial performance,” he said.
Binji said diversifying and extending the duration of its funding sources with the inclusion of the bond, at a competitive rate, would further enable the company to achieve its strategic objectives and vision.
The BUA Cement boss disclosed that the company would soon increase its production output to 11 million metric tonnes per annum after the completion of four model production lines in Edo and Sokoto states.
Divisional Head, Listings Business of the Exchange, Mr. Olumide Bolumole said it was a delight to see listed companies take full advantage of the opportunities on the NGX platform.
Bolumole also said that the NGX would continue to support corporates to raise long-term funds through its various platforms.
Chief Executive Officer of Stanbic IBTC Capital, the lead issuing house to BUA Cement bond transaction, Mr. Funso Akere commended investors for investing in the bond.
Akere said the transaction was a landmark, being the largest corporate bond issuance in the history of Nigeria’s debt capital market.
The doyen of the market, Alhaji Rasheed Yussuf urged BUA Cement not to disappoint the market, stockbrokers and all investors for the confidence shown to the company.
