TransCentury announces plan to acquire Aureos Capital shares

By JAMES ANYANZWA

NAIROBI, KENYA: TransCentury Group has announced plans to acquire all of the shares held by the private equity fund Aureos Capital Ltd in Cable Holdings Kenya (CHK) Ltd.

This is in exchange for the shares of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) listed infrastructure company by way of a share swap.

CHK presently controls 68.38 per cent of the voting shares of East African Cables Limited, listed on the NSE.

CONDITIONAL SALE

In a statement yesterday TransCentury said the completion of the conditional sale and purchase agreement is subject to regulatory approvals from Capital Markets Authority (CMA) and the NSE.

 “Shareholders will shortly be receiving a detailed circular, which will provide a full explanation of the reasons for and the terms of the proposed transaction,” the company said.

“In the meantime, shareholders of the company are advised to exercise caution when dealing in the company’s shares until further announcements are made.”

The company, however, could not divulge more details on the proposed transaction.

This comes barely a month after Transcentury Group also announced major investment plans with a view to reviewing its shareholding in the Kenya-Uganda Railways Holding Ltd, the lead investor in Rift Valley Railways.

The company said its wholly owned subsidiary Safari Rail Company Ltd has exercised an option that will result in a change of its shareholding in KU Railways Holding Ltd.

Chief Executive Gachao Kiuna said the transaction is in line with the Group’s overall strategy to maximize the value of its investments for its shareholders.

“Basically there are on-going negotiations between Ambience and Safari that are likely to result in a change in shareholding,” he said.

The transaction is scheduled for completion on March 31, 2014 subject to applicable regulatory notifications.

Rift Valley Railways, a consortium that was established to manage the parastatal railways of Kenya and Uganda is owned by Rift Valley Railways Investments Pty Ltd, which is in turn owned by the Kenya Uganda Railways Holdings (KURH).