www.theafricareport.com
N° 108 • JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
THE AFRICA REPORT QUARTERLY EDITION • N° 108 • JULY - AUGUST - SEPTEMBER 2019
AFRICAN COMPANIES
From L-R, CEO of OCP, Mostafa Terrab; CEO of Steinhoff, Louis du Preez; and Exec VP of Globacom, Bella Disu
Growth returns for Africa’s Champions ANGOLA In search of missing billions TECH Job killer or job creator? GHANA Grand plans seek finance
EXCLUSIVE KAGAME AND MUSEVENI, BROTHERS IN ARMS
SOUTH AFRICA Agribiz confronts land issue INTERNATIONAL EDITION Algeria 610 DA • Belgium €7.90 • Canada CA$ 12 • Denmark 80 DK • Ethiopia 200 Birr • France €7.90 • Germany €7.90 • Ghana GH¢ 35 • Kenya KES 1000 • Morocco 45 DH • Netherlands €7.90 • Nigeria 2000 NGN • Norway NK 95 • Rwanda RWF 7,500 • Sierra Leone LE 67,000 • South Africa R75 (tax incl.) • Sweden SEK 100 • Switzerland 10.90 FS • Tanzania TZS 20,000 • Tunisia 15 DT • Uganda UGX 40,000 • UK £7.2 • United States US$ 15.99 • Zambia 80 ZMW • Zimbabwe US$ 6.20 • CFA Countries 3,900 F.CFA • Euro Zone €7.90
JEUNE AFRIQUE MEDIA GROUP
TOP
82
AFRICAN COMPANIES
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
The continent’s major corporates have turned a corner and returned to growth in our new Top 500 rankings. Turnover in 2017 was still below 2012’s record figures, hindered by currency pressures and weak demand for commodities. The oil and gas sector is likely to see the most positive growth in 2019 and a continental trade deal offers opportunities in many sectors. By PIERRE-OLIVIER ROUAOUD for Jeune Afrique and HONORÉ BANDA THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
83
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
rise in our ranking next year, and Sonatrach recorded a The continent’s growth and the turnover of its Top 500 turnover increase of 10% in dollar terms in 2018. companies are on the rise. In dollar terms, the turnover of our Top 500 companies grew by 11.9% year-on-year Currency pressures, which had been significant for in the fiscal year 2017. This is welcome news after the several years, particularly due to inflation and interest-rate revenue reported by the top companies dropped by 6.7% differentials between Africa and the advanced economies, in our last rankings. Discussing McKinsey & Company’s reached a peak in 2016 with the brutal devaluation of the naira in Nigeria (30%) and the Egyptian pound (48%). ‘Africa’s Overlooked Business Revolution’ report, co-author The situation has since stabilised. Acha Leke told reporters: “You need to have patience The impact of these two factors – currenand a long-term mindset, as you will face the cies and raw materials – weakened in 2017. inevitable storms. But you will be able to see these through if you have an understanding of Thus, the activity, expressed in US dollars, of the context and have developed resilience.” several Egyptian groups is on the rise again. EgyptAir Holdings (#99) rose 22 places. It Weak currencies and low commodity prices are obstacles to Africa’s biggest corporations is important to keep these devaluations in getting back to past highs. The total turnover mind when comparing across currencies: Percentage turnover of the Top 500 companies according to our expressed in naira, Dangote Sugar Refinery growth of the ranking is still 15.7% – and $99.8bn – lower (#237)’s turnover, for example, jumped by Top 500 African than the record of $736.8bn reported in the more than 310% in three years; expressed in companies year-onyear 2012 (see chart below). dollars, it increased by only about 10% over year in the fiscal year 2017 (US$) the period. But some countries continue to Against a backdrop of weaker macrostruggle with some of these challenges. For economic growth, the main explanations example, the Ghanaian cedi is still faltering and Angola for this drop in turnover are twofold: the price of raw will only emerge from recession this year, according to materials and currency effects. On the commodity side, the International Monetary Fund. in 2016 the price per barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude reached its lowest level since 2004, at $43.20 The African economy as a whole is clearly in a recovery per barrel as an annual average, according to World Bank phase. The African Development Bank (AfDB) estimated data. This hurt national oil companies such as Sonangol that continental gross domestic product growth was 3.5% in 2018, the same figure as in 2017. (#3) or Sonatrach (#1) and all oil-dependent economies, including Algeria, Nigeria, Angola and Gabon. Metals such as copper, nickel, platinum and alumiPlaying catch-up num also followed this trend, due to fears of a sharp Growth is expected to accelerate to 4% this year and 4.1% slowdown in the Chinese economy. The average annual in 2020. This year the economies most likely to record copper price rebounded by nearly 27% in 2017 and by the highest growth – according to the IMF – of between 5.8% in 2018. As for the oil price, as an annual average, 7.5% and 8.8% are Ghana, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Côte d’Ivoire. But the AfDB indicated in its latest WTI increased by nearly 18% in 2017, then by more than 27% in 2018 to reach $64.80. Oil companies are set to macroeconomic outlook of early 2019 that this level of growth remains insufficient ‘to absorb persistent budget COMBINED TURNOVER OF TOP 500 COMPANIES and current-account deficits and debt that has sometimes ($bn) become unsustainable. Countries must therefore accelerate 736.8 their growth rates and strengthen [their] effectiveness in 728.7 creating decent jobs.’ And those rosier growth predictions 711.6 do not take into account the impact of a US-China trade 698.2 689.9 war, especially if it drags on. All African regions, and almost all sectors, showed growth in their 2017 results. The biggest jump in turnover was in the oil and gas sector, at $13.6bn. Manufacturing, 637 telecoms and finance all recorded double-digit rises in 610.4 turnover. Diversified companies and ‘others’ were the 586.9 only sectors to drop in our Top 500 ranking. This year, 46 companies dropped out of the Top 500, 566.9 a fairly typical number. The three largest disappear569.2 ances in terms of turnover are the South African brewer SABMiller, which no longer publishes detailed national 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 or even regional accounts since its integration into the CREDIT PHOTO
11.9 19
84
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
Mining $50.5bn 47 Diversified 32 $48.6bn Oil & Gas
$92.4bn 52
TOP CLIMBERS
Financial services 46 $45.8bn
Transport 28 $35.8bn ICT/Telecoms 55 $75.1bn
Number of companies
Manufacturing* 43 $75.9bn
5.6% 7.2% 11.8%
11.9%
Agribusiness**
Total
$637bn
7.9%
8.3%
Number of companies
7.6%
500
14.5% 6.3%
Utilities $40.1bn 36
Company
4.2% 4.9%
9.7%
$52.6bn 73
Other*** $26.8bn 19 Construction 42 $30.9bn
Retail $61.9bn 27
* Includes paper, steelmaking, electrical equipment, textiles, automobile, chemicals & plastics ** Includes food & drink, agro-food industry *** Includes media, healthcare, tourism, audit & consulting
Country
Turnover $000 (2017)
% Turnover change
Orange Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
759 450
269%
Assore
South Africa
583 407
173%
Al Ezz Dekheila Steel Co.
Egypt
1 701 648
129%
Alexandria Mineral Oils Co.
Egypt
538 938
124%
BSI Steel
South Africa
363 420
111%
Turnover $000 (2017)
% Turnover change
TOP FALLERS Company
Country
Grindrod
South Africa
247 079
-62%
Zain Sudan
Sudan
419 000
-41%
Perseus Mining Ghana
Ghana
220 604
-37%
Datatec
South Africa
3 923 715
-36%
Seven-Up Bottling Co.
Nigeria
229 074
-35%
takeovers. It is making a bigger move into the platinum ABInbev group. Fellow South African corporate JD Group was acquired by Steinhoff International. Finally, metals group with the purchase of Lonmin (#117), which the Egyptian state-owned Middle East Oil Refinery has is due to be completed before the end of this year. At the 2019 Mining Indaba, Sibanye-Stillwater chief executive not published its account for two years. But it but should do so soon: the government has planned to welcome Neal Froneman voiced worries about the firm’s home a new investor among its shareholders or to list it on base: “The investment climate in South Africa is not the stock exchange. yet conducive to investing in projects with a 10-year time horizon.” In our ranking of oil and gas companies, On the whole, sub-Saharan Africa is profAlgeria’s Sonatrach and Angola’s Sonangol maintained their spots in the top three iting from the recent downturn in commodity companies. Both firms are in the midst of prices in order to make reforms to improve big changes. The leadership of Sonatrach the business climate. In the World Bank’s 2019 hangs in the balance of elections planned ‘Doing Business’ report, sub-Saharan Africa countries had ratified after the resignation of long-serving presiaccounted for about a third of the world’s the Continental Free dent Abdelaziz Bouteflika. And in Angola, business-focused government initiatives. Top Trade Agreement reformers included several of the countries Sonangol was in the midst of huge reforms by the end of April when President João Lourenço sacked where economies have been growing strongly, – sufficient for it to come into force its leadership in early May. That raises including Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya and Rwanda. questions about whether the new bosses Rwanda, for example, is on par with New will agree to the selling off of the assets deemed as Zealand in terms of transferring ownership of property. Gabon is one of the few African oil exporters to enact a non-strategic by the previous team. With fields maturseries of measures to boost the private sector. ing and production dropping, the government plans to award 55 licences for oil blocks over the next six years Continental trade bloc to improve Sonangol’s bottom line. Mining is another sector of cyclical businesses recovAreas where the continent continues to lag behind its peers ering from recent lows. Sibanye Gold (#35) reported the include access to electricity and facilitating cross-border biggest revenue rise amongst its peers in 2017, due in part trade. The African Continental Free Trade Agreement is to its acquisition of US-based miner Stillwater that year. due to come into force at the end of May, having reached the required 22 ratifications. It is set to keep boosting Despite long worker strikes in 2019 and rising electricity, intra-African trade for years to come. Sibanye is continuing with its strategy of growth through
22
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
85
SOURCE: AFRICA REPORT RESEARCH
SECTOR BY SECTOR
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
Tanger Med steams ahead
Morocco had the second-largest number of companies in the Top 500 with 64, and 8.5% of the total turnover. The Moroccan economy is growing thanks to its wellorganised private sector, its closeness and access to European markets and key investments in logistics and energy infrastructure. The Tanger Med Port Authority (#473), which in 2018 took first place in Africa for container traffic, surpassing Durban, is inaugurating its expansion this year.
SECTOR BY SECTOR Sectors
Total 2017 turnover
Financial services
45 861 321
7.2%
46
Manufacturing*
75 975 460
11.9%
43
Agribusiness**
52 626 268
8.3%
73
Other***
26 874 113
4.2%
19
Construction
30 920 808
4.9%
42
Retail
61 979 310
9.7%
27
Utilities
40 148 356
6.3%
36
Oil & gas
92 489 911
14.5%
52
Diversified
48 650 407
7.6%
32
Mining
50 512 821
7.9%
47
ICT/Telecoms
75 188 330
11.8%
55
Transport
35 869 246
5.6%
28
637 096 352
100%
500
TOTAL
Sector as % of turnover
Number of companies
* Includes paper, steelmaking, electrical equipment, textiles, automobile, chemicals & plastics ** Includes food & drink, agro-food industry *** Includes media, healthcare, tourism, audit & consulting
Hurt by its recession, Nigeria had just 28 companies in the Top 500 this year, down three from the previous ranking. Those companies’ turnover was down to 2.9% of the total, compared to 4.2% last time. MTN Nigeria (#48) hopes that its plans to list shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange before July of this year will be a major step to improving relations with the government. The subsidiary of the South African telecoms giant resolved conflicts with the Abuja government over unregistered SIM cards and unauthorised dividend payments. However, MTN Nigeria says it will not list until it has resolved another $2bn tax dispute with the government of Muhammadu Buhari. Meanwhile, Safaricom (#64) is set to remain Kenya’s top corporate. Bob Collymore is set to retire in August, having overseen the firm for the most crucial years of mobile-money platform M-Pesa’s growth. A new leader will set Safaricom’s strategy as it tries to fend off the global tech companies aiming for the payments space.
METHODOLOGY This year, we sent our questionnaire to more than 14,000 companies active on the continent. After cross-checks and verification, we established a ranking of approximately 1,500 companies, which includes responses from previous years. The top-ranking 500 are published here. To allow for comparison, we apply the same rules
86
to all our data: 1) All financial data must have a clearly defined source, generally communicated to us by the companies themselves, and must refer to the year 2017 (in some cases 2017/2018); 2) If presented in the local currency, we convert the data into US dollar amounts according to the rate on 31 December 2017; 3) We include all companies that
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
fall under the legal jurisdiction of at least one of the 54 countries in Africa, which is why a holding company and a subsidiary can both feature in the list; and 4) Where we cannot obtain up-to-date figures, we use those of the previous year (marked with an asterisk and italics). After two years of silence, a company is struck off the rankings.
SOURCE : AFRICA REPORT RESEARCH
Company leaders in many countries have long complained about the lack of dialogue with African governments. At the 2019 Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame had this in mind when he said, on the subject of continental economic ingetration: “The full involvement of the African business community is critical to keep us on track.” In our Top 500 ranking, South Africa remains the heavyweight in terms of its share of turnover and the number of companies represented. South African firms took 170 out of 500 spots and represented 58% of the total turnover, a rate that has remained steady over the past few years. The election of President Cyril Ramphosa as head of the country raises many hopes in terms of recovery, governance and also the reform of public companies such as South African Airways (#43), and especially Eskom (#4). Eskom’s dysfunctions have been plaguing the economy for years, particularly the mining sector. The South African private sector is also in need of reform. Steinhoff International (#2) remains in its position at the top of the list, but it has yet to recover from its accounting crisis. It published the results of its audited accounts in May 2019 for the 2017 financial year, which produced a loss of $4.5bn and writedowns of $17bn. The audit also revealed a number of unreported transactions at the company with firms linked to members of the Steinhoff board. The full impact of the scandal has not yet been revealed and there are many shareholder suits currently in the courts.
THE MOST POWERFUL AND INFLUENTIAL NETWORK OF BUSINESS LEADERS IN AFRICA
Access to a wider community of high-level decision-makers and investors in Africa
A dedicated relationship manager for personalized introductions to targeted contacts
Regular networking events in the main African economic hubs
www.theafricaceonetwork.com memberservices@theafricaceonetwork.com
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
‘We need small and medium enterprises […]. It can’t just be the dominance of the big retailers’ KUSENI DLAMINI Chairman, Massmart Holdings (#12)
Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
Company
Sector
Country
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Net profits
1
1
-
Sonatrach
Petroleum
Algeria
33 200 000
10%
NA
2
2
-
Steinhoff International Holdings
Wood and paper
South Africa
23 965 629
38%
1 774 300
3
3
-
Sonangol
Petroleum
Angola
17 496 264
19%
164 190
4
5
+1
Eskom
Utilities
South Africa
14 328 762
11%
-188 736
5
6
+1
Sasol
Chemicals
South Africa
13 923 589
11%
1 737 390
6
8
+2
Shoprite Holdings
Retail
South Africa
11 387 160
21%
438 931
7
7
-
MTN Group
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
10 730 500
0%
367 458
8
10
+2
Bidfood
Agribusiness
South Africa
10 573 632
4%
325 615
9
9
-
10
14
+4
Imperial Holdings
Diversified
South Africa
9 435 918
9%
207 149
Sanlam
Insurance
South Africa
9 204 702
46%
11
11
968 312
-
SPAR Group
Retail
South Africa
7 847 788
17%
12
146 991
12
-
Massmart Holdings
Retail
South Africa
7 593 790
14%
122 892
13
17
+4
Vodacom Group
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
6 975 241
18%
1 256 787
14
15
+1
Naspers
Media
South Africa
6 660 000
9%
11 298 000
15
18
+3
Pick n Pay Stores Group
Retail
South Africa
6 586 794
15%
104 689
16
24
+8
Transnet
Transport
South Africa
5 886 354
24%
391 767
17
4
-13
The Bidvest Group
Diversified
South Africa
5 733 799
-14%
393 187
18
19
+1
Engen Petroleum
Petroleum
South Africa
5 655 865
3%
267 719
19
25
+6
Vodacom South Africa
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
5 650 535
20%
NA
20
13
-7
The Bidvest Group South Africa
Diversified
South Africa
5 627 318
0%
NA
21
22
+1
Woolworths Holdings
Retail
South Africa
5 608 863
15%
439 980
22
20
-2
Suez Canal Authority
Ports
Egypt
5 600 000
12%
NA
23
26
+3
Anglo American Platinum Corp.
Mining
South Africa
5 304 963
18%
155 382
24
21
-3
Sappi
Wood and paper
South Africa
5 296 000
3%
338 000
25
28
+3
Office Chérifien des Phosphates
Mining
Morocco
5 165 570
24%
499 379
26
23
-3
Barloworld
Diversified
South Africa
5 003 809
4%
141 895
27
27
-
AngloGold Ashanti
Mining
South Africa
4 543 000
7%
-171 000
Indequity Group
Financial services
South Africa
4 357 487
22%
608 446
Old Mutual Life Assurance Co.
Financial services
South Africa
3 985 344
9%
597 786 35 678
28
-
-
29
31
+2
30
35
+5
31
16
-15
32
34
+2
33
44
+11
34
32
-2
35
56
+21
ONEE
Utilities
Morocco
3 957 434
18%
Datatec
Media
South Africa
3 923 715
-36%
44 359
Mediclinic Corporation
Healthcare
South Africa
3 871 974
14%
639 483
Kumba Iron Ore
Mining
South Africa
3 745 568
29%
1 302 901
Groupe Maroc Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Morocco
3 723 560
7%
607 689
Sibanye Gold
Mining
South Africa
3 707 821
64%
-358 017
36
29
-7
Orascom Construction Industries
Construction
Egypt
3 678 700
-9%
85 100
37
36
-1
Al Mada (ex S.N. d'Investissement)
Diversified
Morocco
3 655 676
11%
495 928
38
45
+7
Transnet Freight Rail
Rail transport
South Africa
3 529 939
24%
NA
39
40
+1
MTN South Africa
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
3 435 692
13%
NA
40
38
-2
Naftal*
Petroleum
Algeria
3 382 000
NA
NA
41
48
+7
Aspen Pharmacare Holdings
Healthcare
South Africa
3 328 362
29%
414 137
42
42
-
Telkom
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
3 312 614
11%
255 040
43
-
-
South African Airways
Air transport
South Africa
3 295 008
48%
-419 952
44
41
-3
Liberty Group
Insurance
South Africa
3 227 977
8%
280 318
45
53
+8
ArcelorMittal South Africa
Metals
South Africa
3 151 417
33%
-414 137
Global Telecom Holding
ICT/Telecoms
Egypt
3 014 700
2%
-41 800
Impala Platinum Holdings
Mining
South Africa
2 975 279
14%
-653 994
46
43
-3
47
47
-
48
33
-15
MTN Nigeria
ICT/Telecoms
Nigeria
2 907 764
-15%
NA
49
37
-12
Sonelgaz
Utilities
Algeria
2 824 955
-12%
NA
50
46
-4
Gold Fields
Mining
South Africa
2 810 800
2%
-7 700
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
88
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
1-50
The cost of Ethiopian Airlines’ (#52) Chinesefunded expansion of Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, inaugurated in January 2019.
51-100 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
51
49
52
Diff.
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Company
Sector
Country
-2
Network Healthcare Holdings
Healthcare
South Africa
2 755 935
12%
Net profits -220 394
51
-1
Ethiopian Airlines
Air transport
Ethiopia
2 710 000
12%
232 800
53
52
-1
Discovery Health
Insurance
South Africa
2 708 125
13%
362 935
54
54
-
Masscash
Retail
South Africa
2 621 776
14%
NA
55
57
+2
Wilson Bayly Holmes-Ovcon
Construction
South Africa
2 576 782
16%
62 149
56
68
+12
Foschini
Retail
South Africa
2 546 888
33%
196 739
57
55
-2
Tiger Brands
Agribusiness
South Africa
2 527 618
10%
253 425
58
72
+14
Super Group
Auto industry
South Africa
2 412 613
28%
107 635
59
92
+33
Elsewedy Electric
Electrical equipment
Egypt
2 409 888
78%
364 285
60
73
+13
Santam
Insurance
South Africa
2 400 187
28%
145 933
61
96
+35
Ezz Steel Company
Metals
Egypt
2 344 224
84%
-88 744
62
74
+12
Clicks Group
Retail
South Africa
2 288 949
24%
103 182
63
58
-5
MMI Holdings
Insurance
South Africa
2 276 705
8%
127 682
64
62
-2
Safaricom
ICT/Telecoms
Kenya
2 243 683
10%
530 774
65
70
+5
Masswarehouse
Retail
South Africa
2 241 001
18%
NA
66
64
-2
Remgro
Diversified
South Africa
2 228 976
11%
687 106 561 682
67
66
-1
Dangote Cement
Construction
Nigeria
2 215 351
11%
68
60
-8
Maroc Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Morocco
2 181 227
4%
NA
69
69
-
Blue Label Telecoms
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
2 164 389
13%
84 581
70
67
-3
71
59
-12
Edgars Consolidated Stores
Retail
South Africa
2 120 192
6%
NA
Cevital
Agribusiness
Algeria
2 027 752
-3%
105 509
72
-
-
Afriquia SMDC
Petroleum
Morocco
1 994 288
NA
NA
73
75
+2
RCL Foods
Food and drink
South Africa
1 972 643
9%
70 938
74
78
+4
Distell Group
Food and drink
South Africa
1 956 877
26%
132 962
75
50
-25
Aveng
Diversified
South Africa
1 894 307
-23%
-544 242
76
80
+4
Exxaro Resources
Mining
South Africa
1 842 378
21%
487 144
77
85
+8
Sonatel
ICT/Telecoms
Senegal
1 780 416
22%
370 000
78
86
+8
Kansanshi Mining
Mining
Zambia
1 740 000
20%
NA
79
71
-8
Murray & Roberts Holdings
Construction
South Africa
1 728 022
-9%
3 876
80
87
+7
Mr Price Group
Retail
South Africa
1 723 984
20%
224 594
81
90
+9
Royal Air Maroc
Air transport
Morocco
1 704 213
20%
NA
82
159
+77
Al Ezz Dekheila Steel Company
Metals
Egypt
1 701 648
129%
NA
83
99
+16
Life Healthcare Group
Healthcare
South Africa
1 693 295
42%
90 370
84
82
-2
Massdiscounters
Retail
South Africa
1 641 899
10%
NA
85
77
-8
STEG
Utilities
Tunisia
1 640 584
2%
NA
86
101
+15
Kap International Holdings
Diversified
South Africa
1 597 675
36%
112 499
87
81
-6
Pioneer Foods Group
Food and drink
South Africa
1 580 877
6%
58 648
88
94
+6
Harmony Gold Mining Company
Mining
South Africa
1 555 761
17%
29 235
89
117
+28
KenolKobil
Petroleum
Kenya
1 523 618
54%
23 661
90
91
+1
Nampak
Wood and paper
South Africa
1 520 040
9%
28 751
91
93
+2
AECI
Chemicals
South Africa
1 492 606
11%
127 520
Flour Mills of Nigeria
Food and drink
Nigeria
1 492 344
-12%
37 443
Cosider
Construction
Algeria
1 489 786
2%
298 037 NA
92
76
-16
93
84
-9
94
61
-33
95
-
-
96
98
+2
STIR
Petroleum services
Tunisia
1 480 881
2%
Saham Group
Diversified
Morocco
1 470 000
19%
NA
Truworths International
Retail
South Africa
1 458 929
21%
231 458 49 453
97
-
-
Dis-Chem
Healthcare
South Africa
1 445 387
NA
98
88
-10
Allied Electronics Corporation
Electrical equipment
South Africa
1 427 918
0%
13 568
99
121
+22
EgyptAir Holdings
Diversified
Egypt
1 408 717
48%
292 108
100
100
-
Omnia Holdings
Chemicals
South Africa
1 402 963
19%
53 625
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
89
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
Total Maroc (#104) is targeting 15 new service stations in 2019. In 2018 it launched an ‘eco-responsible’ service station near Rabat.
101-150 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
101
95
-6
102
-
-
103
83
104 105
Diff.
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Company
Sector
Country
Tongaat-Hulett Group
Food and drink
South Africa
1 371 466
5%
Net profits
Vivo Energy Maroc
Petroleum services
Morocco
1 371 289
NA
NA
-20
Oando
Petroleum services
Nigeria
1 367 597
-8%
54 376
142
+38
Total Maroc
Petroleum services
Morocco
1 308 672
66%
105 746
97
-8
Mohammed Enterprises Tanzania
Retail
Tanzania
1 292 748
3%
NA
106
-
-
Petrojet
Petroleum
Egypt
1 291 680
NA
NA
107
108
+1
Saham Finances
Insurance
Morocco
1 272 623
21%
111 498
108
127
+19
Sun International
Tourism
South Africa
1 260 583
43%
-969
109
124
+15
EOH Holdings
ICT/Telecoms
South Africa
1 250 934
35%
94 738
67 112
110
102
-8
Adcorp Holdings
Services
South Africa
1 237 679
6%
-45 309
111
112
+1
SNH
Petroleum
Cameroon
1 211 082
17%
523 349
112
106
-6
Hosken Consolidated Investments
Diversified
South Africa
1 208 213
12%
159 613
113
89
-24
Ethio Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Ethiopia
1 208 023
-15%
NA
114
107
-7
RMI Holdings
Insurance
South Africa
1 203 970
12%
299 216
Tullow Ghana
Petroleum
Ghana
1 196 100
79%
NA
Marjane Holding
Retail
Morocco
1 171 500
12%
NA
115
181
+66
116
109
-7
117
104
-13
Lonmin
Mining
South Africa
1 166 000
4%
-1 152 000 193 980
118
213
+95
COMILOG
Mining
Gabon
1 160 220
100%
119
65
-54
The Arab Contractors
Construction
Egypt
1 133 983
16%
NA
120
119
-1
Tsogo Sun Holdings
Tourism
South Africa
1 128 621
16%
174 280
121
110
-11
PSG Group
Insurance
South Africa
1 127 087
8%
196 005
122
152
+30
EgyptAir Airlines
Air transport
Egypt
1 123 767
-91%
70 253
123
118
-5
Société Nationale de Raffinage
Petroleum
Cameroon
1 090 583
33%
NA
124
-
-
Algérie Télécom Mobilis
ICT/Telecoms
Algeria
1 086 120
0%
NA
125
122
-3
Compagnie Ivoirienne d'Électricité
Utilities
Côte d'Ivoire
1 085 668
14%
3 636
126
131
+5
Total Kenya
Petroleum services
Kenya
1 069 666
25%
26 287
127
126
-1
Anglovaal Industries
Food and drink
South Africa
1 064 788
20%
125 436
Massbuild
Construction
South Africa
1 049 363
14%
NA
Telecom Egypt
ICT/Telecoms
Egypt
1 042 739
34%
171 396 35 857
128
125
-3
129
144
+15
131
139
+8
Alviva Holdings (ex-Pinnacle Hldg)
Electrical equipment
South Africa
1 034 657
30%
130
153
+23
Mota-Engil Africa
Construction
South Africa
1 030 643
38%
47 668
132
197
+65
Ghana Oil Company
Petroleum services
Ghana
1 028 599
7%
14 693
133
137
+4
Transnet Port Terminals
Transport
South Africa
1 000 859
24%
NA
134
129
-5
Astral Foods
Agribusiness
South Africa
997 477
15%
60 967
135
133
-2
Ghabbour Auto
Auto industry
Egypt
991 594
18%
-40 640
136
184
+48
SONABHY
Petroleum services
Burkina Faso
985 754
50%
49 366
137
143
+6
Orange Côte d'Ivoire
ICT/Telecoms
Côte d’Ivoire
985 155
27%
117 121
138
136
-2
IBL (ex-GML)
Diversified
Mauritius
975 346
18%
58 404
139
140
+1
Rand Water
Utilities
South Africa
967 586
22%
191 805
140
147
+7
Holmarcom Group
Diversified
Morocco
962 228
25%
NA
141
120
-21
Olam Group Cote d'Ivoire*
Agribusiness
Côte d’Ivoire
955 276
-101%
-6 642
142
192
+50
Société Africaine de Raffinage
Refining
Senegal
954 617
51%
4 411
143
161
+18
Groupe SIFCA
Agribusiness
Côte d'Ivoire
954 032
30%
54 309
144
113
-31
Nigerian Breweries
Food and drink
Nigeria
947 547
-7%
90 884
145
203
+58
Renault Commerce Maroc
Auto industry
Morocco
946 400
NA
NA
146
148
+2
Transnet National Ports Authority
Transport
South Africa
944 811
25%
NA
147
-
-
Lixia Capsia Gestionis
Financial services
Morocco
924 193
NA
55 811
Optimum Telecom Algeria
ICT/Telecoms
Algeria
915 000
-12%
NA
Total Gabon
Petroleum services
Gabon
914 141
23%
108 031
Transnet Rail Engineering
Rail transport
South Africa
908 550
33%
NA
148
111
-37
149
154
+5
150
176
+26
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
90
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
‘Our vision is to grow the region to 1m ounce [of gold] per annum in the next two to three years’ ALFRED BAKU Executive VP West Africa, Gold Fields (#153)
Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
Company
Sector
Country
151
235
+84
Pétrole du Maghreb
Petroleum services
Morocco
905 250
NA
NA
152
116
-36
Ooredoo Algeria
ICT/Telecoms
Algeria
898 204
-10%
NA
153
-
-
154
145
-9
155
178
156
135
157
157
-
Label’ Vie
158
115
-43
Group Five Holdings
159
170
+11
Growthpoint Properties
160
138
-22
Lafargeholcim Maroc
161
141
-20
162
165
+3
163
158
-5
164
182
+18
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Net profits
Gold Fields Ghana
Mining
Ghana
891 100
0%
105 800
COSUMAR
Agribusiness
Morocco
887 358
15%
105 254
+23
Choppies Enterprises
Retail
Botswana
884 000
30%
7 454
-21
Kenya Power and Lighting
Utilities
Kenya
882 736
6%
69 755
Retail
Morocco
881 243
19%
25 653
Construction
South Africa
872 265
-13%
-62 399
Construction
South Africa
865 424
22%
682 180
Construction
Morocco
860 840
7%
205 226
Taqa Morocco
Utilities
Morocco
860 740
9%
107 971
Wafa Assurance
Insurance
Morocco
857 325
19%
87 224
CMH Group
Auto industry
South Africa
853 843
15%
19 985
Stefanutti Stocks Holdings
Construction
South Africa
847 223
28%
-41 029
165
-
-
Algérie Télécom
ICT/Telecoms
Algeria
844 760
-1%
NA
166
204
+38
CDC Gestion
Financial services
Tunisia
844 481
39%
257 677
167
149
-18
PetroSA
Petroleum services
South Africa
841 382
12%
-53 753
168
151
-17
MTN Ghana (Scancom Ghana Ltd)
ICT/Telecoms
Ghana
838 450
12%
NA
169
196
+27
Econet Wireless
ICT/Telecoms
Zimbabwe
831 597
34%
132 291
170
171
+1
Pretoria Portland Cement Company
Construction
South Africa
829 486
19%
2 988
171
166
-5
Lafarge Africa
Construction
Nigeria
822 672
15%
-95 154
172
162
-10
Hulamin
Metals
South Africa
820 497
12%
26 831
173
163
-10
Mpact
Wood and paper
South Africa
817 267
12%
23 219
174
167
-7
Clover Holdings
Food and drink
South Africa
812 332
14%
12 781
175
123
-52
Total Nigeria
Petroleum services
Nigeria
792 172
-16%
22 053
176
146
-30
PGI Holding-Amengroup
Diversified
Tunisia
790 189
3%
80 188
177
199
+22
Reunert
Electrical equipment
South Africa
789 267
28%
92 228
178
222
+44
Société Nationale d'Électricité
Utilities
Senegal
788 492
46%
NA
179
193
+14
Cashbuild
Construction
South Africa
785 766
25%
37 916 55 763
180
103
-77
Poulina Group Holding
Diversified
Tunisia
780 425
-30%
181
134
-47
Invicta Holdings
Auto industry
South Africa
778 511
-7%
18 677
182
114
-68
Kenya Airways
Air transport
Kenya
775 670
-24%
-58 378
183
105
-78
Condor Electronics
Electrical equipment
Algeria
770 904
-30%
36 971
184
173
-11
Lydec
Utilities
Morocco
768 605
10%
21 316
185
188
+3
Metair Investments
Auto industry
South Africa
768 565
18%
47 452
186
186
-
African Reinsurance Corporation
Insurance
Nigeria
746 829
14%
87 928
187
297
+110
Al Ezz Rolling Mills
Metals
Egypt
746 591
98%
NA
188
485
+297
Orange Burkina Faso
ICT/Telecoms
Burkina Faso
759 450
269%
NA
189
198
+9
Sanam Agro
Agribusiness
Morocco
755 477
19%
NA
190
155
-35
Aurecon*
Construction
South Africa
743 400
NA
NA
191
195
+4
Mondi Group South Africa
Wood and paper
South Africa
739 192
18%
NA
192
174
-18
African Rainbow Minerals
Mining
South Africa
728 374
5%
115 648
193
190
-3
Kloof Gold Mining Company
Mining
South Africa
714 330
11%
77 320
194
189
-5
Orange Egypt
ICT/Telecoms
Egypt
711 967
10%
-92 466
195
169
-26
Tarkwa Mines
Mining
Ghana
710 800
0%
85 400
196
267
+71
Sofitex
Agribusiness
Burkina Faso
700 000
65%
NA
197
180
-17
Centrale Danone
Food and drink
Morocco
694 274
4%
12 248
198
215
+17
Johannesburg Water Company
Utilities
South Africa
694 018
21%
23 528
199
187
-12
Raubex
Construction
South Africa
689 872
6%
36 559
200
160
-40
Zeder Investments
Agribusiness
South Africa
685 249
-8%
16 798
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
91
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
151-200
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
Pan-African e-commerce giant Jumia Group (#219) listed 17.6% of its shares with an initial offer of $14.50 on the NYSE in April 2019.
201-250 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
201
-
-
202
217
+15
203
201
-2
204
177
-27
205
209
+4
206
221
+15
207
214
+7
208
175
209 210 211 212
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Company
Sector
Country
Liquid Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Mauritius
680 948
NA
Net profits 138
RMB Holdings
Financial services
South Africa
678 303
22%
662 394
East African Breweries Group
Food and drink
Kenya
674 372
9%
81 740
Trencor
Sea transport
South Africa
673 861
-1%
-46 841
Nestlé Nigeria
Food and drink
Nigeria
671 416
14%
92 740
Total Côte d'Ivoire
Petroleum services
Côte d'Ivoire
662 885
23%
19 072
RMA
Insurance
Morocco
662 877
15%
NA
-33
Driefontein Mine
Mining
South Africa
652 290
-4%
33 338
225
+16
Orange Mali
ICT/Telecoms
Mali
649 833
23%
NA
207
-3
AGIL
Petroleum services
Tunisia
647 280
9%
6 775
202
-9
Nigerian Bottling Company
Food and drink
Nigeria
637 043
4%
NA
216
+4
Axian Group
Diversified
Madagascar
637 000
12%
NA
213
172
-41
Groupe Addoha Douja Promotion
Construction
Morocco
630 107
-10%
92 250
214
240
+26
Redefine Properties
Construction
South Africa
627 514
32%
274 605
215
282
+67
Munich Reinsurance Co. of Africa
Insurance
South Africa
624 180
56%
NA
216
128
-88
Tanzania Electric Supply Company
Utilities
Tanzania
622 738
NA
65 842
217
223
+6
SA des Brasseries du Cameroun
Food and drink
Cameroon
616 548
14%
40 147
218
226
+8
Air Mauritius
Air transport
Mauritius
610 659
16%
5 395
219
-
-
Jumia Group
Retail
Nigeria
606 315
NA
-197 761
220
228
+8
MTN Côte d'Ivoire
ICT/Telecoms
Côte d'Ivoire
599 320
15%
NA
221
224
+3
Orange Maroc
ICT/Telecoms
Morocco
594 908
14%
42 178
222
208
-14
Catoca Sociedade Mineira*
Mining
Angola
593 617
NA
NA
223
200
-23
East African Breweries Kenya
Food and drink
Kenya
592 260
-4%
NA
224
271
+47
Eastern Company
Agribusiness
Egypt
591 984
42%
167 268
225
232
+7
226
442
+216
227
243
228
211
229
183
230
238
+8
231
298
+67
232
257
+25
233
250
234 235
Ciel Group
Diversified
Mauritius
583 836
18%
32 970
Assore
Mining
South Africa
583 407
173%
414 972
+16
OK Zimbabwe
Retail
Zimbabwe
582 878
23%
16 631
-17
Innscor Africa
Agribusiness
Zimbabwe
580 303
-1%
34 449
-46
Volta River Authority
Utilities
Ghana
579 997
-3%
-94 941
Delta Corporation
Food and drink
Zimbabwe
572 227
18%
88 508
Oriental Weavers Company
Textile
Egypt
571 368
54%
41 657
Vivo Energy Côte d'Ivoire
Petroleum
Côte d'Ivoire
569 887
31%
9 158
+17
Northam Platinum
Mining
South Africa
569 466
23%
-51 359
292
+58
Famous Brands
Tourism
South Africa
567 185
48%
5 116
242
+7
Total Sénégal
Petroleum services
Senegal
566 657
20%
7 606
236
237
+1
Société Tunisienne de l’Air
Air transport
Tunisia
563 799
17%
-140 000
237
218
-19
Dangote Sugar Refinery
Agribusiness
Nigeria
562 162
2%
109 405
238
194
-44
Airports Company of South Africa
Air transport
South Africa
557 732
-11%
68 041
239
233
-6
Metropolitan Life
Insurance
South Africa
557 082
13%
NA
240
263
+23
Groupe Managem
Mining
Morocco
553 749
29%
93 625
241
206
-35
Oceana Group
Agribusiness
South Africa
549 808
-8%
38 712
242
234
-8
Essakane Gold Mine
Mining
Burkina Faso
547 400
3%
NA
243
258
+15
Bell Equipment
Auto industry
South Africa
546 469
25%
21 971
244
227
-17
Société des Mines de Loulo
Mining
Mali
544 941
4%
313 491
245
415
+170
Alexandria Mineral Oils Company
Petroleum
Egypt
538 938
124%
61 807
246
231
-15
Auto Hall
Auto industry
Morocco
538 312
8%
17 767
247
248
+1
Holding Al Omrane
Construction
Morocco
537 643
3%
26 994
248
251
+3
Meikles Africa
Diversified
Zimbabwe
534 930
17%
8 194
249
236
-13
Eneo Cameroon
Utilities
Cameroon
533 741
10%
7 885
250
-
-
Sonatel Mobiles
ICT/Telecoms
Senegal
532 627
NA
NA
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
92
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
South Africa’s Ascendis Health (#257) jumped 105 positions in this year’s ranking of the Top 500 Companies, climbing from #362 last year.
251-300 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
Company
Sector
Country
251
274
+23
CDG Développement
Services
Morocco
532 500
30%
NA
252
219
-33
South African Broadcasting Corp.
Media
South Africa
531 276
-3%
-50 207
253
229
-24
58 593
254
383
+129
255
255
-
256
262
+6
257
362
+105
258
275
259
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Net profits
Biopharm
Pharmaceuticals
Algeria
528 057
2%
IPS West Africa
Diversified
Côte d'Ivoire
525 210
97%
NA
Produce Buying Company
Agribusiness
Ghana
522 060
18%
-6 571
Qalaa Holdings
Financial services
Egypt
521 294
21%
-264 738
Ascendis Health
Healthcare
South Africa
519 693
83%
24 819
+17
Kaap Agri Ltd
Agribusiness
South Africa
518 132
26%
19 497
249
-10
CTP Holdings
Media
South Africa
517 443
11%
36 746
260
261
+1
Saham Assurance Maroc
Insurance
Morocco
516 103
20%
46 917
261
241
-20
Sudatel Telecom Group
ICT/Telecoms
Sudan
513 160
8%
45 020
262
244
-18
Zimplats Holdings
Mining
Zimbabwe
512 549
9%
45 538
263
205
-58
SNIM
Mining
Mauritania
510 835
-15%
2 271
264
212
-52
Pharmacie Centrale de Tunisie
Healthcare
Tunisia
506 936
NA
-58 396
265
270
+5
Tradex
Petroleum services
Cameroon
506 767
21%
20 278
266
-
-
Nakumatt Holdings
Retail
Kenya
501 120
NA
-30 720
ETAP
Petroleum services
Tunisia
494 313
25%
44 839
Comair
Air transport
South Africa
489 707
13%
23 983
Lesieur Cristal
Food and drink
Morocco
481 085
22%
18 972
Adcock Ingram Holdings
Pharmaceuticals
South Africa
479 396
19%
45 316
267
285
+18
268
260
-8
269
286
+17
270
279
+9
271
305
+34
Talaat Moustafa Group
Construction
Egypt
479 045
33%
74 513
272
287
+15
Sefalana Holding Company
Food and drink
Botswana
477 880
22%
17 562
273
281
+8
Hudaco Industries
Auto industry
South Africa
476 613
19%
34 093
274
317
+43
Eterna Oil & Gas
Chemicals
Nigeria
475 833
37%
5 505
275
273
-2
Merafe Resources
Mining
South Africa
475 591
15%
73 824
276
278
+2
Hollard Insurance
Insurance
South Africa
473 250
17%
69 086
277
256
-21
Zalar Holding
Agribusiness
Morocco
471 919
7%
3 182
278
314
+36
Afriquia Gaz
Gas
Morocco
471 164
35%
61 086
279
300
+21
Namibian Power Corporation
Utilities
Namibia
468 880
28%
81 114
280
293
+13
Siicegypt
Agribusiness
Egypt
466 867
23%
17 220
281
296
+15
Pioneers Holding
Financial services
Egypt
462 717
23%
41 654
282
280
-2
African Oxygen
Chemicals
South Africa
459 767
14%
51 525
283
259
-24
Vodacom Tanzania
ICT/Telecoms
Tanzania
458 475
6%
86 090
284
276
-8
Electricidade de Moçambique
Utilities
Mozambique
454 290
12%
-47 538
285
295
+10
Prosuma Group
Retail
Côte d'Ivoire
453 555
20%
2 714
286
396
+110
Seplat Petroleum Development Co.
Petroleum
Nigeria
452 179
78%
265 230
287
277
-10
Lewis Group
Retail
South Africa
448 767
11%
21 329
288
-
-
CMDT
Agribusiness
Mali
448 350
29%
NA
289
272
-17
Vodacom DRC
ICT/Telecoms
RDC
448 541
8%
-86 979
290
269
-21
Aveng Steel
Metals
South Africa
443 534
5%
NA
291
290
-1
Axa Assurance Maroc
Insurance
Morocco
437 843
13%
34 932
292
440
+148
eXtract Group (ex Eqstra Holdings)
Auto industry
South Africa
437 558
103%
-157 240
293
335
+42
Salam Gaz
Petroleum services
Morocco
436 650
34%
NA
294
254
-40
MTN Cameroon
ICT/Telecoms
Cameroon
433 923
-3%
NA
295
288
-7
Eclosia Group
Food and drink
Mauritius
432 300
10%
NA
296
294
-2
Ciments du Maroc
Construction
Morocco
430 367
13%
107 033
297
319
+22
Waco International
Construction
South Africa
428 050
24%
21 550
298
291
-7
Mustek
Media
South Africa
423 437
10%
5 954
299
245
-54
Tunisie Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Tunisia
423 374
-10%
NA
300
284
-16
MTN Uganda
ICT/Telecoms
Uganda
419 387
6%
NA
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
93
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
‘Now that Isimba Dam is on board […], we [must] make more investments into our networks’ SELESTINO BABUNGI CEO of Umeme (#310)
Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
Company
Sector
Country
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
301
168
-133
Zain Sudan
ICT/Telecoms
Sudan
419 000
-41%
302
-
-
Mutuelle Taamine Chaabi
Insurance
Morocco
414 125
54%
NA
303
375
+72
Total Petroleum Ghana
Petroleum services
Ghana
409 386
50%
7 188 NA
Net profits 65 000
304
246
-58
North Mara Gold Mine
Mining
Tanzania
408 213
-13%
305
264
-41
Ooredoo Tunisia
ICT/Telecoms
Tunisia
407 714
-5%
NA
306
289
-17
SFBT
Food and drink
Tunisia
405 710
4%
72 511
307
425
+118
Bissa Gold
Mining
Burkina Faso
402 883
75%
NA
308
-
-
Société Gabonaise de Raffinage
Petroleum services
Gabon
402 640
-3%
NA
309
324
+15
Office National des Aéroports
Air transport
Morocco
399 056
19%
57 084
310
311
+1
Umeme
Utilities
Uganda
398 636
12%
9 583
311
308
-3
Espitalier Noël Group
Diversified
Mauritius
397 929
11%
36 961
312
361
+49
MISR Insurance Company
Insurance
Egypt
396 827
40%
NA
313
354
+41
Société Nationale de Sidérurgie
Metals
Morocco
395 588
34%
4 663
314
322
+8
315
265
-50
316
435
+119
317
252
-65
318
310
-8
319
247
-72
320
-
-
321
376
322
266
323 324
ONCF
Rail transport
Morocco
394 050
17%
-59 534
Beatrix Mine
Mining
South Africa
393 770
-8%
-33 847
Maghreb Steel
Metals
Morocco
392 542
49%
-12 917
Julius Berger Nigeria
Construction
Nigeria
390 199
-14%
7 073
Copperbelt Energy Corporation
Utilities
Zambia
389 532
10%
48 378
Tanzania Breweries
Food and drink
Tanzania
386 112
-18%
21 374
Kenya Ports Authority
Ports
Kenya
385 939
4%
91 314
+55
Maurel & Prom Gabon
Petroleum
Gabon
385 172
27%
NA
-56
Société Magasin Général
Retail
Tunisia
384 216
-10%
4 200
344
+21
Raya Holding
Electrical equipment
Egypt
378 822
21%
5 797
479
+155
Al Ezz Flat Steel
Metals
Egypt
378 013
105%
NA
325
-
-
Entreprise Nationale de Forage
Petroleum
Algeria
375 142
6%
NA
326
351
+25
Rhodes Food Group Holdings
Food and drink
South Africa
370 956
23%
18 962
327
299
-28
Basil Read Holdings
Construction
South Africa
369 973
-1%
-81 641
328
339
+11
Société des Mines de Tongon
Mining
Côte d'Ivoire
368 765
16%
171 202
329
337
+8
Sania Compagnie
Agribusiness
Côte d'Ivoire
367 643
14%
7 763
330
326
-4
MTN Sudan
ICT/Telecoms
Sudan
366 650
10%
NA
331
307
-24
Société des Mines de Gounkoto
Mining
Mali
366 510
3%
204 922
332
350
+18
Palm Hills Development Company
Construction
Egypt
365 305
20%
52 592
333
498
+165
BSI Steel
Metals
South Africa
363 420
111%
NA
334
334
-
NSIA Participations
Diversified
Côte d'Ivoire
363 275
11%
10 369 -63 939
335
321
-14
Suez Cement Company
Construction
Egypt
363 244
8%
336
342
+6
Transnet Pipelines
Petroleum
South Africa
362 451
15%
NA
337
331
-6
South African Post Office
Services
South Africa
359 263
9%
-73 347
338
239
-99
Forte Oil
Petroleum
Nigeria
355 970
-26%
33 623
339
306
-33
South Deep Gold Mine
Mining
South Africa
354 100
-1%
-25 300
340
347
+7
SOLIBRA
Food and drink
Côte d'Ivoire
353 871
15%
7 778
341
332
-9
Consolidated Infrastructure Group
Construction
South Africa
352 830
7%
-12 151
342
268
-74
Ceca-Gadis
Retail
Gabon
350 811
0%
1 373
343
313
-30
Egypt Kuwait Holding Company
Diversified
Egypt
348 762
-1%
138 184
Tigo Tanzania
ICT/Telecoms
Tanzania
348 000
0%
NA
Novus Holdings
Wood and paper
South Africa
347 922
11%
5 687
344
318
-26
345
343
-2
346
328
-18
Guinness Nigeria
Food and drink
Nigeria
346 280
4%
5 290
347
302
-45
Bamburi Cement
Construction
Kenya
345 350
-5%
18 941
Maghrébail
Financial services
Morocco
345 049
9%
9 936
Dangote Flour Mills
Agribusiness
Nigeria
344 972
0%
33 355
11 (ex Mobil Oil Nigeria)
Petroleum
Nigeria
344 457
13%
20 677
348
341
-7
349
320
-29
350
348
-2
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
94
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
301-350
Number of service stations owned by Puma Energy Zambia (#352) as of April 2019, located in the main towns and cities of Zambia.
351-400 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
351
323
352
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Company
Sector
Country
-28
SEEG
Utilities
Gabon
344 223
2%
Net profits NA
336
-16
Puma Energy Zambia
Petroleum
Zambia
341 300
5%
5 393
353
379
+26
Juhayna Food Industries
Food and drink
Egypt
340 597
26%
11 105
354
340
-14
Kibali Gold Mine
Mining
RDC
339 683
6%
129 454
355
253
-102
AFC
Chemicals
Egypt
338 172
NA
125 701
356
301
-55
Aveng Mining
Mining
South Africa
337 900
-7%
8 884
357
355
-2
Santova Logistics
Transport
South Africa
333 017
13%
5 756
358
360
+2
Alexander Forbes
Financial services
South Africa
330 631
16%
26 409
359
408
+49
ADvTECH Group
Services
South Africa
330 058
36%
30 689
360
363
+3
Quantum Foods Holdings
Food and drink
South Africa
327 231
15%
10 306
361
315
-46
Alliances Dév. Immobilier
Construction
Morocco
321 176
-8%
26 756
362
327
-35
SGTM
Construction
Morocco
320 644
-16%
18 490
363
338
-25
Délice Holding
Food and drink
Tunisia
320 433
0%
15 577
364
372
+8
Conoil
Petroleum services
Nigeria
317 661
15%
4 341
365
392
+27
Chirano Gold Mine
Mining
Ghana
317 600
23%
NA
366
357
-9
Coronation Fund Managers
Financial services
South Africa
316 498
8%
122 997
367
407
+40
Autoroutes du Maroc
Construction
Morocco
316 180
NA
4 793
368
433
+65
Golden Star Resources
Mining
Ghana
315 497
43%
40 959
369
370
+1
370
397
+27
371
-
-
372
401
+29
373
365
374
367
375
432
376
409
377
377
-
378
447
+69
379
-
-
380
405
381
309
Airtel Uganda
ICT/Telecoms
Uganda
311 858
12%
66 154
Onatel
ICT/Telecoms
Burkina Faso
309 905
22%
62 118
Enl Land Ltd
Agribusiness
Mauritius
308 289
82%
40 272
Energie du Mali
Utilities
Mali
307 219
24%
-40 443
-8
Bidvest Namibia
Diversified
Namibia
304 986
8%
4 992
-7
Ciel Textile
Textile
Mauritius
302 871
8%
16 183
+57
Vodacom Mozambique
ICT/Telecoms
Mozambique
302 042
36%
53 544
+33
Vivo Energy Mauritius
Petroleum services
Mauritius
301 683
24%
7 794
Delta Holding
Diversified
Morocco
300 598
10%
22 453
Tasiast Mauritanie
Mining
Mauritania
298 400
43%
NA
Italtile
Construction
South Africa
296 389
15%
68 242
+25
Orange Guinée
ICT/Telecoms
Guinea
295 728
21%
NA
-72
MRS Oil
Petroleum services
Nigeria
294 493
-17%
3 809
382
329
-53
National Foods Holdings
Food and drink
Zimbabwe
289 508
-12%
13 705
383
399
+16
Ciments de l'Atlas
Construction
Morocco
288 701
15%
62 875
384
382
-2
ENGTP
Petroleum
Algeria
286 072
7%
24 791
385
410
+25
Royal Bafokeng Platinum
Mining
South Africa
282 539
16%
53 059
386
-
-
Compagnie Générale Immobilière
Construction
Morocco
281 995
38%
-126 536
387
364
-23
Kenya Electricity Generating Co.
Utilities
Kenya
281 941
0%
86 948
388
403
+15
One Tech Holding
Electrical equipment
Tunisia
281 782
15%
19 610
389
366
-23
Groupe Benamor*
Food and drink
Algeria
281 765
0%
9 371
390
-
-
Motraco
Utilities
Mozambique
281 700
NA
7 300
391
345
-46
Distribution & Warehousing Network Refining
South Africa
280 934
-10%
-34 441
392
473
+81
Sidi Kerir Petrochemicals Co.
Petroleum
Egypt
280 531
49%
63 555
393
443
+50
Leal Group
Diversified
Mauritius
280 316
32%
6 449
394
359
-35
MTN Benin
ICT/Telecoms
Benin
280 237
-4%
NA
395
353
-42
Cervejas de Moçambique
Food and drink
Mozambique
280 058
66%
34 231
396
481
+85
SAPH
Agribusiness
Côte d'Ivoire
278 122
53%
23 536
397
402
+5
Princes Tuna
Agribusiness
Mauritius
277 860
13%
-2 310
398
448
+50
Nestlé Côte d'Ivoire
Food and drink
Côte d'Ivoire
275 460
33%
-7 883
399
394
-5
New Mauritius Hotels
Tourism
Mauritius
274 597
7%
-1 095
400
387
-13
Press Corporation
Diversified
Malawi
272 653
4%
53 955
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
95
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
Unilever Nigeria (#420)’s revenue hit N72.3bn ($201m) in 2018, a 10.7% increase year on year from 2017. Profit after tax was N10.5bn.
401-450 Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
401
391
402
393
403 404
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
Company
Sector
Country
-10
Peermont Global
Tourism
South Africa
272 016
5%
Net profits NA
-9
Jubilee Holdings
Insurance
Kenya
271 957
6%
40 611
398
-5
Marsa Maroc
Transport
Morocco
270 000
7%
63 300
385
-19
Airtel DRC*
ICT/Telecoms
RDC
265 140
98%
NA
405
411
+6
Société Minière de Dinguiraye
Mining
Guinea
263 523
9%
NA
406
352
-54
SEMAFO Burkina Faso
Mining
Burkina Faso
258 993
-14%
NA
407
428
+21
Bryte Insurance Company
Insurance
South Africa
258 432
15%
NA
408
419
+11
Brasseries du Maroc
Food and drink
Morocco
258 339
10%
43 393
409
446
+37
Alteo
Agribusiness
Mauritius
257 334
23%
30 953
410
-
-
TGCC
Construction
Morocco
256 697
4%
24 419
411
420
+9
CCR
Insurance
Algeria
256 282
6%
25 570
412
-
-
Hyprop Investments
Construction
South Africa
255 819
15%
221 842
Zambeef
Food and drink
Zambia
255 796
17%
343
Botswana Power Corp.*
Utilities
Botswana
254 678
NA
NA
Avbob Industries
Insurance
South Africa
252 803
29%
33 410
413
434
+21
414
-
-
415
460
+45
416
412
-4
Tullow Gabon
Petroleum
Gabon
251 800
4%
NA
417
386
-31
GIPLAIT
Food and drink
Algeria
249 980
NA
NA
418
429
+11
Aveng Grinaker-LTA
Construction
South Africa
249 791
11%
NA
419
436
+17
Rogers & Co
Diversified
Mauritius
249 668
14%
32 408
420
427
+7
Unilever Nigeria
Chemicals
Nigeria
249 621
10%
20 488
421
456
+35
Axia Corporation
Retail
Zimbabwe
248 262
26%
15 274
422
185
-237
Grindrod
Transport
South Africa
247 079
-62%
-41 016
423
477
+54
PALMCI
Agribusiness
Côte d'Ivoire
246 677
33%
15 936
424
374
-50
UAC of Nigeria
Diversified
Nigeria
245 240
-11%
3 642
425
449
+24
Orange Tunisie
ICT/Telecoms
Tunisia
244 273
NA
NA
426
495
+69
Deneb Investments
Financial services
South Africa
243 142
15%
1 791
427
-
-
428
466
+38
Cairo Poultry
Food and drink
Egypt
242 584
67%
20 532
Atlanta Assurances
Insurance
Morocco
241 879
27%
429
-
-
20 558
Kenya Pipeline Company
Petroleum
Kenya
241 295
10%
430
414
-16
76 431
Al Arafa Holding
Textile
Egypt
239 937
0%
431
439
+8
6 587
Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation
Agribusiness
Swaziland
239 185
11%
24 580
432
373
-59
433
457
+24
Maridive & Oil Services
Petroleum
Egypt
238 835
-13%
20 483
RADEEMA
Utilities
Morocco
238 603
24%
434
423
-11
-3 222
Middle & West Delta Flour Mills
Food and drink
Egypt
238 455
2%
435
-
-
2 864
Gabon Special Economic Zone
Services
Gabon
238 390
NA
112 591
436
472
437
389
+36
Nu World Holdings
Transport
South Africa
238 083
27%
13 769
-48
Engen DRC*
Petroleum
RDC
236 088
-10%
438
6 871
400
-38
Zambia Sugar
Agribusiness
Zambia
234 593
-6%
1 124
439
-
-
Groupe Intelcia
Services
Morocco
234 300
85%
NA
440
422
-18
CDCI
Retail
Côte d'Ivoire
233 091
NA
NA
441
413
-28
SNMVT Monoprix
Retail
Tunisia
232 858
-3%
-126
442
494
+52
TAQA Arabia
Petroleum
Egypt
232 699
32%
11 422
443
418
-25
SCAMA
Auto industry
Morocco
231 852
-2%
2 305
444
461
+17
Botswana Insurance Holdings
Insurance
Botswana
231 680
19%
39 500
445
-
-
446
416
-30
Leadway Assurance Company
Insurance
Nigeria
231 487
35%
38 050
Société Nationale d’Assurances
Insurance
Algeria
229 611
-4%
447
312
-135
28 023
Seven-Up Bottling Company
Food and drink
Nigeria
229 074
-35%
448
426
-22
NA
Banro Congo Mining*
Mining
RDC
228 346
NA
449
-
NA
-
Workforce Holdings
Services
South Africa
226 765
24%
7 818
450
-
-
Brimstone Investment Corporation
Financial services
South Africa
224 790
15%
11 878
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
96
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
‘Customer centricity is not just another catchphrase for us, rather it is a business philosophy’ JONAS MUSHOSHO Group CEO of Old Mutual Zimbabwe (#491)
Rank 2017
Rank 2016
Diff.
Company
Sector
Country
Turnover (2017)
Turnover change
451
462
+11
Britam Holdings
Insurance
Kenya
223 664
15%
18 318
452
-
-
The Rand Mutual Assurance Co.
Insurance
South Africa
223 185
33%
64 259
453
390
-63
PZ Cussons Nigeria
Chemicals
Nigeria
221 520
-14%
5 300
454
459
+5
Engen Botswana
Petroleum
Botswana
221 436
17%
14 730
455
463
+8
Transnational Corp. of Nigeria
Diversified
Nigeria
220 784
14%
29 170
456
316
-140
Perseus Mining Ghana
Mining
Ghana
220 604
-37%
NA
457
-
-
Agbaou Gold Operations
Mining
Côte d'Ivoire
219 748
-10%
81 626
458
458
-
MTN Zambia
ICT/Telecoms
Zambia
219 183
12%
NA
459
490
+31
Namibia Breweries
Food and drink
Namibia
218 777
23%
32 117
460
441
-19
Airtel Zambia
ICT/Telecoms
Zambia
218 029
2%
36 143
461
430
-31
Rössing Uranium Mine
Mining
Namibia
217 713
-3%
157
462
444
-18
Guelb Moghrein Copper-Gold Mine
Mining
Mauritania
217 000
2%
NA
463
438
-25
MDJS*
Tourism
Morocco
216 860
NA
NA
464
421
-43
Airtel Tanzania
ICT/Telecoms
Tanzania
215 841
-8%
-48 317
Net profits
465
-
-
Groupe Sipromad
Diversified
Madagascar
214 615
25%
NA
466
451
-15
Société Centrale de Réassurance
Insurance
Morocco
214 467
6%
52 394
467
484
+17
FEICOM
Services
Cameroon
213 359
19%
NA
468
404
-64
MTN Congo
ICT/Telecoms
Congo
212 318
-14%
NA
469
465
-4
Sechaba Brewery Holdings
Food and drink
Botswana
212 216
39%
11 148
470
492
+22
Eqdom
Insurance
Morocco
212 075
20%
14 511
471
431
-40
Buzwagi Gold Mine
Mining
Tanzania
206 255
-8%
NA
472
486
+14
Peregrine Holdings
Diversified
South Africa
206 099
15%
41 444 70 535
473
-
-
Tanger Med Port Authority
Ports
Morocco
205 415
24%
474
487
+13
Airports of Mauritius
Air transport
Mauritius
205 065
15%
NA
475
500
+25
Compagnie d'Assurances Sanad
Insurance
Morocco
204 560
19%
8 587
476
488
+12
Value Group
Transport
South Africa
202 969
14%
6 620
477
-
-
Umgeni Water-Amanzi
Utilities
South Africa
202 669
17%
60 255
478
-
-
IndianOil Mauritius
Petroleum
Mauritius
202 580
21%
2 329
479
-
-
CFM
Rail transport
Mozambique
201 030
33%
50 473 6 594
480
-
-
481
491
+10
482
-
-
ELB Group
Construction
South Africa
200 325
55%
Gabon Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Gabon
199 855
-2%
NA
Les Eaux Minérales d'Oulmès
Food and drink
Morocco
199 387
23%
20 792
CAAT
Insurance
Algeria
199 367
-1%
21 636
Afrimat
Construction
South Africa
198 410
23%
19 817
Résidences Dar Saada
Construction
Morocco
198 101
-3%
35 180
483
452
-31
484
-
-
485
450
-35
486
437
-49
Aveng Manufacturing
Construction
South Africa
197 377
-8%
NA
487
497
+10
Honeywell Flour Mills
Agribusiness
Nigeria
196 560
14%
12 174
488
-
-
Swan Group
Insurance
Mauritius
196 375
15%
7 649
489
-
-
Aptis (ex TNS Tobacco Company)
Agribusiness
Mauritius
195 976
27%
NA
490
-
-
Sodecoton
Agribusiness
Cameroon
195 810
NA
NA
491
471
-20
Old Mutual Zimbabwe
Insurance
Zimbabwe
194 763
3%
219 262
492
-
-
Upper Egypt Flour Mills
Food and drink
Egypt
193 864
13%
NA
493
-
-
Britam Kenya
Insurance
Kenya
193 487
14%
NA
494
499
+5
Illovo Sugar Malawi
Agribusiness
Malawi
192 794
12%
8 025
495
-
-
Currimjee Jeewanjee & Co.
Diversified
Mauritius
191 912
17%
NA
496
-
-
Middle Egypt Flour Mills
Food and drink
Egypt
190 270
19%
NA
497
493
-4
DRDgold
Mining
South Africa
188 970
7%
1 106
498
368
-130
Mauritius Telecom
ICT/Telecoms
Mauritius
188 922
-32%
-2 839
499
-
-
Sénégalaise des Eaux
Utilities
Senegal
188 490
25%
NA
500
-
-
Jiro Sy Rano Malagasy
Utilities
Madagascar
188 124
21%
-26 369
2017 results in thousands of US dollars; *in italics 2016 results; NA: not available
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
97
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
451-500
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
INTERVIEW
JAMES MWORIA Greenfields just don't work for us
The CEO of investment firm Centum has had a stratospheric rise at the company. He is now building up a $500m fund to target mid-cap companies in East Africa Interview by NICHOLAS NORBROOK TAR: Is there a capital drought in Africa? Or is it a project drought? I think there is more of a shortage of market-validated and feasible projects. The project development lifecycle if you are doing, say, infrastructure projects is a very long one. So although there are many projects that have been mooted, the process from conception to financial close – getting all the ducks in a row – is a very long one. We are not moving fast enough in getting to bankability. There are issues with changing regulations. Governments – that’s one issue. Then on the company side, companies that can absorb large pools of capital are also not that many. So the only opportunity you have is replacement capital, and a lot of businesses are held by families (see page 107) and they are not selling. In Nairobi, it can feel like there are more malls than there are shoppers. Is there a risk of a bubble in the property sector? These developments are cyclical. What tends to happen is pent-up market demand. The development side responds with an assumption of that growth. And from the point where the decision is made to the point where the developments come on stream, it’s anywhere from three to six years. In that period, you can have a lot of supply arriving at the same time, which is not a coordinated supply – it’s market supply. We have the same problem with hotels. What are the most dynamic areas outside the capital? We invest across the board. We are investing on the coast in Mombasa. That’s a residential development called Vipingo. It started a year ago. We have so far sold over
98
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
‘I CAN DELEGATE OPERATIONS, BUT YOU MUST OWN STRATEGY, YOU MUST OWN TALENT’ 400 residential units. We are also building an industrial park, and we have our anchor customer for that. We have our own desalination plant, [and we are] investing in a private port plus an urban road. We have also sold a site for retail and lifestyle. We have sold a site to a developer for a hotel. So that is coming along well. We also have bottling plants scattered across the country – a plant in Nyeri, a plant in Eldoret, one in Kisii. Our banks are also across the whole country, so while we have the headquarters in Nairobi, we operate nationally and regionally. How did you go beyond the borders of Kenya? What has worked? What we have tended to do is to help our portfolio companies to expand. Our strategy is that once you have scale in your own market, then you expand in the region. That has worked for us [with insurance company UAP, publisher Longman and asset manager Platinum]. What
Do you share the optimism in the East African Community? We used to have East African Airlines and several other regional companies. In the 1970s, we were actually a lot more integrated than [we are] today. My own feeling is that in reality we are falling back. We used to have it, but not any more, for various reasons. The political unity that was there is not what it was.
INVESTING IN HIS FUTURE 1996-98 CPA in accounting and finance, Strathmore University. 1997-2001 Bachelor of Law, University of Nairobi. 2001 Began working as a filing clerk at Centrum Investment Company.
How do you navigate this? Obviously you want to have regional investment. Yes, and that’s part of the challenge. Obviously you remain apolitical. But if you look at how companies have established themselves, they are not regional companies. They are companies with a regional presence. You’ve established a stand-alone unit in each country, but they’re not – to an extent – integrated. We are not there yet. Each of these companies has a national approach.
2005 Appointed chief investment officer at Centum.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Do you find difficulties in, say, getting senior appointments confirmed in a country like Tanzania? How do you manage it? December 2006 Joined Regional work permits is an issue across TransCentury as head the board, even for us in Kenya when we of investments. try to bring expatriates into our some of our portfolio companies. For example, a 2008 Returned to school we developed with an international Centum, aged 30, partner, trying to bring in some of their as its CEO and managing director. teachers from other schools, and we had a big challenge with work permits. So the work permit issue is not just between East Africans, it’s also outsiders coming in, and that’s likely because of unemployment. What we’ve done to mitigate it is that we developed talent centrally that we intend to locate in other countries. So if you want to do business in Tanzania, I have several people, And we’ve employed Tanzanians, working for us in Kenya and other places.
has not worked is where we have developed companies from scratch. Greenfields just don’t work. They have taken a lot of time and scaling up is difficult. Maybe at that early stage you need an owner-manager, an entrepreneur who is there, because you don’t have processes set up and all the rest. When you do put those processes in, it increases the costs, which increases the break-even level. So perhaps the conclusion is that it is best run by an entrepreneur-type leader and our capital is best deployed at a different level.
How far down the track are you looking with that strategy? So we started at graduate level, entry level. [...] I have even taken people I have hired from other countries who have developed to a certain level and then I have placed them or got them senior jobs in their home countries at other companies, with the intention that when we are ready and I go to that market I will be able to say “Come back”. I know I will need this person in the future. If you don’t have talent, you can’t execute strategy. It is a big portion of a CEO’s job. I can delegate operations, but you must own strategy, you must own talent.
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
99
AFRICAN COMPANIES
143rd in our 2019 exclusive ranking
Despite a downward trend for palm oil prices, 2017 was a very good year
AGRIBUSINESS
SIFCA heads downstream
Faced with falling palm oil and rubber prices, the Ivorian agribusiness giant is making a shift to consumer products, while modernising plants and increasing yields By JULIEN WAGNER for Jeune Afrique
For several years, the Ivorian agro-industrial giant Groupe SIFCA (#143), led by chief executive Pierre Billon and chairman Alassane Doumbia, has been talking up its plans to diversify downstream in three key sectors: palm oil, rubber and sugar. The time could now be ripe to make a move. For the past decade, SIFCA has been bound by a noncompete clause with British-Dutch consumer goods company Unilever. This resulted from the 2008 transfer of all the latter’s shares in Palmci and PHCI to SIFCA and Nauvu Investments – a joint venture by Singaporean groups Wilmar and Olam. Since the clause expired last year, SIFCA is now considering selling consumer products such as detergent, soap, oil, margarine, sweets and biscuits. This move could significantly change the fortunes of Côte d’Ivoire’s largest private-sector employer and its 33,000 employees. “The group is now free to develop downstream and will not hold back,” says Hamza Haji of the ratings
100 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
agency Wara. According to him, this diversification is essential for SIFCA as “it would reduce its dependence on raw materials”. As with any agribusiness company, its results have been fluctuating in response to rubber prices in Singapore and palm oil prices in Kuala Lumpur. In 2015 SIFCA just about managed to break even. Despite the downturn, 2017 turned out to be a good year, with €84m ($94m) in net profit. But 2018 did not look so bright. “Palm oil and especially rubber prices have been on a downward trend since 2012, which has had a significant impact on the business,” says Boris Afran, a financial analyst at SGI Hudson & Cie.
Rice comes on board
The downstream shift will be a gradual process for the Abidjan-based group, which already owns consumer product brands such as Palme d’Or, Dinor and Dora in edible oils, Saint Avé and Delicia in margarine and Sucrivoire for sugar. Since last year, Sania, SIFCA’s edible-oil subsidiary, has also been marketing rice under the Dinor brand, which
NABIL ZORKOT
TOP
STUDY AT A GLOBAL UNIVERSITY THAT LOOKS TO THE FUTURE
JOIN OUR GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF AFRICAN CHANGEMAKERS As a truly diverse and global institution, IE University has steadily deepened and extended its activities within Africa over the years. • We have up to 400 African alumni, and over 100 students from all over Africa enroll at IE each year. • Over 50 IE events are hosted annually in more than 20 cities across Africa. • The IE Africa Center partners with African innovators to build academic content and research designed to reshape the world.
130+
Nationalities on campus
101+ 60k+ Programs
Alumni network
www.ie.edu | mea@ie.edu
AFRICAN COMPANIES
could be developed through established Ivorian production chains. This portfolio expansion was made possible by Wilmar, its 27% shareholder since May 2018, one of whose main strengths is trading in Asia. According to Jean-Louis Kodo, a special adviser to chairman Doumbia, another avenue is non-food products. “Sania already processes palm nuts into refined oil and then into byproducts for the cosmetics industry,” he says. “The top customer is Unilever. Soon we will be making soap ourselves!” To achieve this diversification, SIFCA must produce more, while continuing to satisfy its major customers such as Wilmar and Michelin – buyers of palm oil and rubber, respectively.
SAPH has improved the efficienty of its rubber production
SAPH
TOP
10 6 521m CFA francs 36000tn
plant in Liberia has partnered with SIFCA on this project. In addition to its agricultural inGreen energy loan vestments, SIFCA is modernising its Last year the group obtained a production facilities. Rubber subsidturnover in 2017 (+14.5%) €90m syndicated loan from France’s iary SAPH has managed to reduce Proparco aid agency, the Dutch deits break-even point per kilogram velopment bank FMO and Société of rubber from $4.10 to $1.09 in five Générale to finance its transformayears. The group is applying this of rubber produced in 2017 strategy across all its sectors. tion, agricultural development and diversification programme in green The sugar sector is a protected marenergy (biomass). “This funding is ket in Côte d’Ivoire. SICAF’s Sucrivoire subsidiary operates a duopoly with intended to support our industrial of raw palm oil in 2017 SUCAF, a subsidiary for SOMDIAA development. All subsidiaries will benefit from this on the basis of valigroup. Sucrivoire is planning to invest dated investment budgets,” says Kodo. €158.5m by 2023 to increase white The loan was well received by ansugar production from 77,000tn in Ivorian leader in rubber production the 2016-2017 season to 170,000tn. alysts, who were reassured by the presence of a private bank at the “SIFCA is in a comfortable position table. Moreover, the funding came at the right time as when it comes to sugar in Côte d’Ivoire”, observes Wara’s SIFCA had made major investments to modernise its Haji, “but, [as with] palm oil and rubber, the group is not satisfied with its current situation and wants to implants, improve its performance, increase agricultural yields and acquire land. prove its margins. In addition, the Ivorian government is considering further opening the market to imports, in SIFCA is increasingly expanding beyond Côte d’Ivoire. particular to satisfy food manufacturers”, he explains. “We are developing our agricultural activities in Liberia with our subsidiaries CRC [rubber] and MOPP [palm oil], For SIFCA, a significant increase in production would have a twofold benefit: it would better cover demand in in Nigeria with Rubber Estates Nigeria and in Ghana through Wilmar Africa Ltd, Benso Oil Palm Plantation order to satisfy government requirements, while achieving and Ghana Rubber Estates,” adds Kodo. economies of scale. Liberia, in particular, offers great opportunities. Analysts are optimistic about SIFCA’s trajectory. The West African country accounts for only 5% of the “SIFCA can very well reach €1bn in turnover quite 275,000tn of palm oil produced by SIFCA, but if the group quickly [compared to around €800m in 2017],” says continues planting at the current rate, “the country could Haji. “If commodity prices rise in 2020 – this is the trend expected by experts – and if the group succeeds represent the equivalent of half of Ivorian production within 10 years,” says Kodo. Indonesian conglomerate in developing its finished products division, SIFCA will then be on another level,” he concludes. Sinar Mas, which is building a giant palm-nut processing subsidiaries
countries
275000tn 28%
102 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
ADVERTORIAL
CÔTE D’IVOIRE
© MICHAEL JUNG - STOCK.ADOBE.COM
Progress for a new generation
The 12th Mo Ibrahim Forum was held in Abidjan from 5 to 7 April, as if in recognition of Côte d’Ivoire having achieved, in ten years, the continent’s most significant progress in the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG). The theme of this year’s edition, “African youth, migration and jobs”, was also an opportunity for the country to highlight the government reforms undertaken in recent years for this very reason: to offer Côte d’Ivoire’s young people better prospects.
© JACQUES TORREGANO/DIVERGENCE
MORE INVESTMENT IN HUMAN CAPITAL, STARTING WITH HEALTH
How to turn a crisis into an opportunity The obser vation is compelling: 80% of African migrants base their decision on the lack of jobs and an unfavourable economic environment. This is one of the many statistics revealed at the Mo Ibrahim Forum, which took place in Abidjan in early April. This 12th edition of the Forum focused on the issue of African migration and was attended by more than 1,200 people. It mobilised African experts and politicians who, for three days, channelled their efforts and expertise into identifying the causes of a crisis which Mo Ibrahim himself believes can be seen as “an opportunity to be seized”. For this to happen, the leaders of each country have to “guarantee their own citizens the education and opportunities they deserve, before it is too late”. In this regard, many speakers repeatedly reiterated the need to “invest more in human capital, especially health and education”. The message was heard loud and clear in Côte d’Ivoire, where public authorities are
133 BILLION CFA FRANCS EARMARKED FOR VOCATIONAL TRAINING FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
© KARELNOPPE - STOCK.ADOBE.COM
AND EDUCATION
already ahead of the game, not waiting for the Forum’s conclusions to take action. During the discussions, Abdourahmane Cissé, Minister of Petroleum and Energy, reviewed the many efforts made by his country to put in place the necessar y tools for the integration of the younger generations into the labour market, including, first and foremost, vocational training.
Improving the basic education system Through its decentralisation policy, introduced in 2012, Côte d’Ivoire has made significant investments in educational facilities across the country. While universities are covered by a specific 180 billion CFA franc programme, the entire school system has undergone extensive development. For example, there are currently 15 specialist technical education institutions. However this number is set to increase to 38 by 2020. To do this, the public authorities have earmarked a budget of 133 billion CFA francs, once again illustrating their desire to improve the vocational training of young people in order to boost their employment potential. In support of this process, the government has also decided to invest in fostering access to first jobs, through various tax incentives and the introduction of internships for young graduates.
© JACQUES TORREGANO/DIVERGENCE
ADVERTORIAL
However, its attention is also focused on basic education, in primary and secondary schools, with the building of new junior and senior high schools. This proactive policy has rapidly proved successful, with the enrolment rate for children aged 6 to 16 exceeding 95% since 2015, compared with less than 75% ten years earlier.
Industry, a real source of jobs To create jobs for this growing and increasingly skilled young population, the Ivorian government is set on industrialising the country’s economy, especially in the area of agriculture. “We must attract our young people to the agricultural sector in order to create a new class of agro-entrepreneurs,” stressed Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), in Abidjan.
≥ A cocoa paste manufacturing plant.
CREATE A NEW CLASS OF AGRO-ENTREPRENEURS
Here again, Côte d’Ivoire is already aware that local processing of its natural resources is the only way to secure an industrial future, a source of jobs for the population and added value for private companies. Agribusiness alone accounts for three-quarters of the Ivorian manufacturing sector, led by the cocoa sector which locally processes 30% of its exported volumes. Although still far from the 50% targeted in the 2016-2020 National Development Plan (NDP), new tax incentives are expected to be adopted soon to encourage the local processing of cocoa beans. Despite being Africa’s largest cashew nut producer, Côte d’Ivoire still only processes just 10% of the 800,000 tons of cashew nuts it produces each year, spurring the government to take a closer look at the sector, particularly
as it already employs 225,000 people. The plastic, chemical and leather sectors are also significant sources of employment, alongside the many other primary and tertiary activities that make the Ivorian economy one of the most diversified in West Africa today.
© JACQUES TORREGANO/DIVERGENCE
Local content is the way forward
≥ The Castel bottling plant.
Côte d’Ivoire has established a sound employment policy strategy, detailed in its national plan presented in 2016. It aims to create 200,000 jobs per year by 2020, especially among particularly vulnerable groups such as women and young people. Pre-empting the findings of the Abidjan Forum, the National Employment Policy (NEP) provides for improving the correlation between supply and demand reflected in the labour market, and for streamlining the institutional framework and labour legislation to further support economic activity. The document also includes improvements to the national statistical system to facilitate a better understanding of events. The Mo Ibrahim Foundation, in its report, also points out that not only is there a general lack of reliable data available on the continent, but that it is often incomplete and leads to misperceptions that restrict the application of prescribed policies.
IIAG REPORT FIGURES (2008 - 2018 COMPARISON SOURCE MO IBRAHIM FOUNDATION)
+15.9 points
recorded by Côte d’Ivoire for Participation and Human Rights, the second strongest progression on the continent
+ 36.7 points recorded by Côte d’Ivoire in terms of Budgetary and Financial Management, the fifth best progression in Africa
+23.2 points
recorded by Côte d’Ivoire in the area of Transparency, the biggest progression in Africa
+22.6 points
recorded by Côte d’Ivoire in respect of the Rule of Law, the second best improvement on the continent
+38.8 points
recorded by Côte d’Ivoire in terms of Aligning the Education System with Market Needs, one of the few positive results
© FLAMINGO IMAGES - STOCK.ADOBE.COM
ADVERTORIAL
The NEP has ensured that this does not happen in Côte d’Ivoire and the country has already fulfilled some of its promises in support of youth employment, starting with the establishment of a Youth Employment Agency (YEA) in 2016. It operates as a one-stop shop, with the added bonus of tax incentives, without resorting to giving priority to citizens, which is what many other African countries have done. Over the past year, the Ivorian government has been considering introducing quotas reserved for local mining industry workers. This trial could then be extended to other sectors and cover all major current or future large-scale projects in the country. In addition to directly recruiting a national workforce, local content contributes to the setting up and operation of Ivorian SMEs, increasing technology transfers and developing workforce skills. It is now seen by international experts as the essential tool for fostering inclusive growth in a country.
Growth and transparency
In 2016, a one-stop Youth Employment Agency (YEA) was established.
200,000 JOBS PER YEAR BY 2020, ESPECIALLY FOR WOMEN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
This mechanism reinforces the many others that have enabled Côte d’Ivoire to now post the best progress in the Ibrahim Index of African Governance (IIAG). The country ranked 22nd in 2018, up from 41st ten years earlier, having succeeded in improving its scores in each of the four categories of the index: Safety & Rule of Law, Participation and Human Rights, Sustainable Economic Opportunity and Human Development. It is in terms of transparency, democratic participation and educational and health policies that Côte d’Ivoire’s scores have made the most progress in ten years. “A very positive outcome,” said the Mo Ibrahim Foundation in its conclusions. This is expected to further strengthen Côte d’Ivoire’s attractiveness to private investors who will create the Ivorian jobs of tomorrow.
© JACQUES TORREGANO/DIVERGENCE
The government of Côte d’Ivoire is well aware that, in terms of growth and transparency, it still has a long way to go. The country’s robust growth rates of recent years – more than 8% on average – have not been enough to lift a broad segment of the population out of poverty, a problem faced by every country on the continent. To meet the challenge of poverty reduction, the government adopted its Priority Action Plan (PAP) to fight poverty in early 2018.
<
A PRIORITY ACTION PLAN (PAP) HAS BEEN IN PLACE TO FIGHT POVERTY
DIFCOM/DF - PHOTOS : D.R. UNLESS OTHERWISE MENTIONED
SINCE 2018,
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
FAMILY BUSINESSES
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT
How do successful familyowned African firms beat the odds to survive past the first generation and continue to evolve?
Hassen Khelifati, the chief executive of Alliance Assurances in Algeria, recalls the brutal change in minimum capital requirements in the insurance industry that required a quick financial injection in 2010. “It was quite a difficult conversation with the family to get them to open up their equity and go towards the market, but now we are in agribusiness, food, education,” he recalls. Letting go African capitalism is a tapestry of gradually: companies, which are often family Jean Kacou Diagou, founder of NSIA owned. The management of family Participations, companies bring its own set of proband his daughter lems, like improving governance and Janine Diagou, CEO handling successions. Alliance had one of the happier trajectories. It is not the only path available. Take Nigeria’s Diamond Bank. Set up by Pascal Dozie in 1990, it was an innovator and market leader in several categories. Pascal handed the task of running the bank over to his son Uzoma Dozie, who became CEO in 2014. Things did not go well, and the bank’s death spiral ended when it was bought by Access Bank in late 2018. There is a saying beloved of money managers: ‘The first generation makes it, the second generation spends it, and the third generation blows it.’ Luc Rigouzzo of Amethis Capital says: “In my career in both Latin America and Africa, I have seen tragic stories where family groups didn’t have the courage to tell people
JEAN-MARIE HEIDINGER/HANS LUCAS
By NICHOLAS NORBROOK
[read ‘other family members’] that they needed to behave like shareholders and not managers and get out of the operational side of things.” Rigouzzo has long worked with family businesses. He reminds those he works with that just because you own it, doesn’t mean you should necessarily run it. This challenge has become a priority for Rita Maria Zniber of Morocco’s Diana Holding, who wants to avoid the third-generation curse: “We are a family group that has only really just started to open up to the kind of corporate governance that will ensure our sustainability.”
Be wary of nepotism
The group recently restructured its agricultural companies into a sub-holding and sold 22.6% of the equity to Fipar-Holding, an investment fund owned by Morocco’s state-owned Caisse de Dépôt et de Gestion. “It is these institutional partners that allow you take the right path and especially allow you to be certain that nepotism will never be the Achilles heel of the group,” Zniber says.
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
107
TOP
AFRICAN COMPANIES
77
Checks and balances: Rita Maria Zniber, CEO of Diana Holding
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
For many private-equity operators in Africa, the business model is quite different to that seen in, say, the United States. Ziad Oueslati, managing director and co-founder of Tunis-based AfricInvest, preaches the benefits of outside partners to deliver corporate governance in family-owned companies. In East Asia, there was a step change in growth when those types of companies reorganised; Oueslati says family businesses in Africa are heading in the same direction. For Rigouzzo, one of Amethis’s success stories has been Kenya’s Ramco Group, a large conglomerate. Amethis took a 30% stake in Ramco Plexus, the printing division of Ramco Group, freeing up capital for the conglomerate’s expansion into East Africa. Amit Patel, chief executive of Ramco Group, says the change came by building trust. “We didn’t even know that we wanted to divest until we had the conversations over the course of a year,” he recalls. “We thought: ‘Let’s open ourselves up to Africa and the world.’” The restructuring and rationalisation can quickly produce benefits. That may be because of Nigerian familymany of these companies historowned businesses ically grew in an opportunistic intend to pass on to rather than a planned fashion. As the next generation, according to PwC Patel says, “People tell me: ‘You are a confused group. You are in everything,’ but that is simply because wherever we saw an opportunity, we just dived in.” And while this can makes for fast growth, it can mean that the relevant corporate structures to underpin the business may be lacking.
Knowing when to look for partnerships
For Yohannes Mekbebe of Côte d’Ivoire’s Yeshi Group, this problem has become more apparent in the past few years. “Our story starts in 1979, with a partnership between my mom and the Beydoun family from Lebanon,” Mekbebe tells The Africa Report. It has grown into a sprawling conglomerate of 10 companies in eight countries, operating SHARE OF LARGE COMPANIES THAT ARE FAMILY-OWNED (%) As of 2013 or closest available year, based on location of headquarters
Southeast Asia Latin America
70-80
India
70-80
Eastern Europe
60-70
Middle East
60-70
China Africa
35-45 30-40
108 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
SOURCE: MCKINSEY
80-90
in retail, building materials, imports and distribution, with a big chunk of the business focused on steel rebar for the construction industry. His company finances property developments in all of its markets because “developers need space and time to execute payments. And it is becoming a real problem for us, as we are operating as a bank in many of these markets,” says Mekbebe, “and yet we don’t have a finance division to address these needs.” As a result, the Yeshi Group is looking for the right partnership to help it grow – perhaps a fintech company to help with payments, or maybe Visa, says Mekbebe. Cedric de Spéville, chief executive of the Eclosia Group (#295) in Mauritius, has relied on partners to help him learn. “In wheat milling, for example, we brought in an equity partner to bring real knowledge transfer,” he says. “And we are doing an aquarium in Mauritius. Rather than overpay consultants, we have brought in a player from the industry.” Discussions about foreign investors buying shares in a family business can quickly turn hostile, however. For good reason, argues Yeshi’s Mekbebe. Family groups often have their own hidden jewels, the value of which is only just being recognised: distribution networks. Mekbebe says they are critical to doing business on the continent. “Building a distribution channel in an African country can take 10 years, if not a generation. It’s what we all owe to the generations that preceded us,” he says. “And as a family business, you can be quite defensive over that.” Certainly, Mohammed Dewji, chief executive of MeTL, attributes the success he has had in taking on the Unilevers and Coca-Colas of this world to “our very
strong distribution network that reaches right into the hinterland and lets us focus on the bottom-of-the-pyramid customer.” But the right partners are needed, if speed is of the essence. For example, Eclosia took 25 years to get to know the market and set up its operation in nearby Madagascar. “And it is not even that big,” says De Spéville. This would take too long for the small investments on Eclosia’s radar in Kenya and Rwanda, he says.
NSAI to carry on its impressive trajectory. But in 2018 the banking arm of the business lost a third of its value on the regional bourse due to the collapse of SAF Cacao and a bad case of payment-card fraud. At this point JKD was at pains to show investors that the succession is a gradual process. “This group was built of family-owned brick by brick. I want to make sure that the companies survive torch is passed well. One fine morning, you to the 2nd generation, will be surprised,” he told our sister magazine according to the Family Firm Institute Jeune Afrique. More haste, less speed Successions can go less smoothly. Search the annals of legal cases in most countries, and there is Ultimately, the biggest obstacle a family business can face one constant: epic battles involving one side of a family is succession planning. “My father took me to China to trade fairs when I was 12 years old,” says Dewji. “That was in dispute with another. No one fights quite like a family, especially when there is a great deal of money involved. in 1987. You can imagine China in 1987? […] In hindsight, he was trying to train me to get where I am today. And There is no MBA programme to teach how to deal with so I am a father of three children, and you have to give this. Here, the strategies have to be very human. For De them freedom. But you also have to try to influence, to Spéville of Eclosia Group, it is all about investing time give them that mentality: ‘I have built this. I really need in communication. “I have two sisters who don’t live in your help to take it to another level.’” Mauritius. I could quite easily say, ‘I am the CEO. I am Choosing the right moment to step down is key. At 73, driving the group’ and leave them to one side. But I don’t. Jean Kacou Diagou (JKD), Côte d’Ivoire’s second-richest I explain what is going on, and I try to get their opinions,” man, might have been planning to put his feet up as chairhe says. “And this will help, not only as a sounding board, man of NSIA Participations (#334), the banking and but to help get through bad times, which inevitably there will be as a business. No one grows in linear fashion.” insurance group he founded in 1995. His daughter Janine, already group CEO, is credited with bringing in National Bank of Canada as an investor in 2015, Swiss Re in 2017, and the acquisition of Diamond Bank’s assets in francophone West Africa. Everything looked set for
30
While some family businesses choose to bring in partners for expertise, to tackle financing constraints and to rationalise and streamline their operations, others prefer to go it alone. MeTL Group in Tanzania “was founded by my father and my grandmother,” says Mohammed Dewji, now group CEO. He explains how they coped with funding MeTL’s growth in a country that lacks a strong financial sector: “When I came back from university, the biggest bank we had was Barclays Bank. Their paid-up capital was $2m. The maximum they could lend you was 20% [of their paid-up capital]”.
BRUNO LEVY FOR JA
MeTL CHOOSES THE INDEPENDENT ROUTE
Thinking big: Mohammed Dewji, CEO of MeTL
Dewji was certain that a loan of $400,000 was not enough, and so took a plane to South Africa to convince bankers there. “And it was difficult to go as a family business and ask for money. It took time. But eventually we worked up to a syndicated loan with various banks – Investec, RMB, Rabo,
Standard Bank – with lines of credit of over $200m,” he says. That has allowed the company to create industrial divisions. With the heavyweight competition of ABN, Bunge and Cargil, “margins in trading have become very tight. We needed to add value,” concludes Dewji.
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
109
AFRICAN COMPANIES
INTERVIEW
TONY ATTAH
‘We need to raise our game’ With competition growing rapidly across the continent and the globe, NLNG wants to move quickly ahead with a new unit to process liquefied natural gas (LNG) Interview by NICHOLAS NORBROOK in Kigali Tony Attah, the chief executive of Nigeria LNG (NLNG) argues that the next decades will belong to natural gas. “We have been riding on the back of oil for more than 50 years,” says Attah, “now it is time to fly on the wings of gas. Most people don’t realise that Nigeria is more a gas nation than an oil one.” The optimism is partly driven by where gas sits on the spectrum that runs from emission-heavy fossil fuels to renewable energy. “Gas is cleaner, fundamentally cleaner than coal, at least four times cleaner, maybe two or three times cleaner than oil,” says Attah. As such, it is the ideal ‘amphibian’ energy source to bridge the gap between the massive baseload requirements of modern industrial economies and a carbon-free future. There are other dynamics at play, too. For example, Germany’s turn away from nuclear power has made it the world’s largest natural gas importer, while Asian countries such as Japan have also become large importers of natural gas. “We are seven billion [people on earth] today. Over nine billion by 2050, which is not really that far off,” says Attah. The dynamics are “more population, higher demand for energy but also new pressures around environmental challenges that the world is facing.” Nonetheless, Attah says it is important for NLNG not to rest on its laurels. The pace of innovation is such that it is “enough to keep you awake at night as a CEO – everyone wants to be the disruptor, no one wants to be disrupted.” The explosion in popularity of solar-driven mini-grids, for example, or decentralised power distribution projects, make it tough to predict future energy requirements. That uncertainty, however, was not the cause of the great hiatus in NLNG’s growth. “If I step back,
110 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
between 1999 and 2006 Nigeria LNG was the fastest-growing gas plant in the world. Every 18 months we were adding a new train,” Attah tells The Africa Report. Rather, he says, the complexity of managing the initial six trains stalled the implementation of the seventh much-trailed train – a purification and liquefaction unit. “We only started production 20 years ago, so we’re not really a very old country in terms of the LNG market. We’re just beginning to mature,” says Attah. The financial position of the company has also improved because it has paid off its debts. “We have paid off the mortgage. It gives you a bit of flexibility to approach the market again,” he says. Train 7 would be a big boost for the company, increasing production from 22m tonnes per annum (MTPA) to 30MTPA. For comparison, the global gas giant Qatar produces around 77MPTA. The project is now slowly coming out of the blocks. Two front-end engineering and design (FEED) contracts were tendered in 2018, won by Saipem and KBR. “We have a dual FEED strategy, so we signed off two consortia to carry out the
‘EVERYONE WANTS TO BE THE DISRUPTOR, NO ONE WANTS TO BE DISRUPTED’
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
TOP
HYDROCARBONS CAREER 1987 Earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Ibadan 1997 Graduated from the University of Benin with a master’s in business administration 1991 Hired by Shell Petroleum Development Company, later working in project commissioning and core engineering 2013 Vice-president for human resources of Shell sub-Saharan Africa 2014 Named managing director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company 2 September 2016 Appointed CEO of NLNG, replacing Babs Omotowa
design in a competitive bid,” says Attah, who adds that NLNG will scrutinise those bids in July, ahead of the final investment decision in the last quarter of the year. Nigeria has been making progress on local content. Since 2010, all oil and gas projects in Nigeria by law must have a certain percentage of work done by companies in the country. That presents challenges in the case of LNG. “The capacity to play in the cryogenic world – where we cool liquids to -162°C – that’s not something that Nigeria has a lot of capacity in.”
100% Nigerian
NLNG has found some creative solutions that use inhouse knowledge, building from scratch in Nigeria rather than importing modules from abroad. “I have 100% Nigerian management. I don’t have any expatriate or foreign expert on my leadership team,” says Attah. “If you [were] to roll back the clock 20 years, you’d be lucky to find one Nigerian on the leadership team of this company. That is a major transition in terms of knowledge transfer, technology transfer and capacity building […].” For Attah, Train 7 will be a turning point and the beginning of a new phase of energy development for the country. It is not too ambitious, he argues, to see Nigeria being the next Qatar, “growing multiple locations, growing multiple LNG plants”. “Look at the resource base that Nigeria has. We have done a survey of reserve-to-LNG capacity. It is minute compared to others,” says Attah. Trinidad and Tobago, for example, has a 15MPTA plant, with 100trn cubic feet (TCF) of reserves. “I have over 200TCF of gas, plus 600TCF potential, which is why today we are number nine in the world [of countries ranked by gas reserves]. But if we prove our 600TCF, we go to number four. So the scope for gas in Nigeria is immense.” He is acutely aware of other countries that are also ramping up their production capacity. While Qatar previously led the world with 77MPTA, Australia has usurped the top spot, now producing 89MPTA. The US is climbing strongly. “If most of the capacity there that we read about comes to fruition […] we don’t want to be pushed too far down. We need to raise our game.” While praising the government’s support for NLNG, he has had to negotiate the occasional hostile attempt by legislators to unpick some of the corporation’s tax exemptions – once in 2008 and again in 2016. “I think it’s safe to say that there were quite a few misconceptions,” says Attah. “And you cannot start to dig at the foundation of a company of this pedigree that delivers absolute value to the country. Today we are more than $100bn in revenues generated and over $15bn in dividends to governments. That’s huge. We are the largest taxpayer in the country.”
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
111
AFRICAN COMPANIES
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED/ELSEWEDY
TOP
ELECTRICITY
ELSEWEDY’S POWER PLAYS By diversifying its projects and markets, the Egyptian cable manufacturer is inking billions of dollars in new deals and forging ahead in the renewable energy field By ARIANE LAVRILLEUX in Cairo for Jeune Afrique and HONORÉ BANDA Egypt’s Elsewedy Electric (#59) has been on a signing spree, grabbing contracts large and small. The biggest was the $2.9bn joint venture with compatriot company The Arab Contractors (#119) to build the controversial Rufiji Dam in Tanzania’s Selous Game Reserve, signed in December of last year. The project is due to add 2,125 MW to the national grid – which will nearly double its capacity – but international campaigners have complained that it will do irreparable harm to wildlife habitats.
112 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
At the signing, Elsewedy’s chief executive Ahmed Elsewedy told media: “With this unprecedented contract, Elsewedy Electric and its partner are supporting Tanzania’s economic development by exploiting the country’s water resources to build an affordable, reliable and sustainable energy mix for Tanzania’s future.” In the same month, Elsewedy signed a $500m loan with the Cairo-based African Export-Import Bank. Those funds will help it to develop new projects, like a planned new manufacturing unit in Uganda. Meanwhile, cameras were flashing on 28 January, during the visit of France’s President Emmanuel Macron to
business, which was passed from father to son, is not only number one in power cables and telecoms in Egypt, where it owns nine factories, but it has also established itself with success in 25 countries and has nearly 14,000 employees worldwide. Its 2018 turnover was 1% lower compared to the previous year, but Elsewedy recorded growth of 12% in its last quarter, which allowed it to end the year without any debt. Now the largest cable manufacturer in the region, Elsewedy Electric generates 55% of its turnover from cable production in Egypt and about 10 other countries. While cables remains its core business, they are no longer its main growth driver. Since it launched its continental drive in 2002, the company has changed its scale. Its ambition is now to become a provider of integrated solutions, developing, equipping and managing electricity networks on national or regional levels. The group has already developed around 10 turnkey installations in Angola, Ghana and Mauritania, where it has delivered electrical substations at the same time as transmission lines: “We plan to double the number of these integrated projects over the next five years. By producing everything from A to Z, from cable to engineering, we have a solid competitive advantage,” says Tarek Wahby, head of Elsewedy Electric’s turnkey installations Africa sales office. in Angola, Ghana and However, there is no question of a radical Mauritania are part change. The company wants to continue of Elsewedy’s rapidly to move forward on several fronts by setexpanding integrated ting up plants on the continent and selling solutions business transformers (such as in Ethiopia, Nigeria Cairo. In photos, the director of Elsewedy Electric’s inand Zambia) as well as buying land to use for industrial ternational relations signed an agreement with the chief parks. In both areas, its market research has led Elsewedy executive of France’s Montagne et Neige Développement to focus on Uganda. It is one of the fastest-growing Group (MND Group). MND’s Xavier Gallot-Lavallée said countries on the continent, with 6% growth in 2018, he was “particularly proud” to forge a new alliance with and has a big infrastructure deficit. the Middle East and North African cable leader, which The company is also on the lookout for other African exports to nearly 110 countries. markets. It set up operations in Morocco in October 2018 in the hope of participating in the country’s expanding In this small cablecar specialist, which employs nearly renewables sector. 400 people, Elsewedy Electric saw an opportunity to develop new markets in cable transport – a technology In terms of exports, Elsewedy Electric is also at a that has something to offer many growing cities in the strategic turning point in its development. While 50% region that lack public transport. So could people one day of its production is purchased locally in Egypt, mainly be going to the top of the pyramids of Giza in a cablecar? by the state and its public companies, the company plans to expand into Latin America and Asia. The Continental drive method is the same as in Africa: do not focus on a These new partnerships illustrate the Egyptian giant’s single business segment but fill in the gaps in each country’s market. This is done by favouring the endesire to continue its diversification, with activities rangergy sector, whose growth forecasts exceed those of ing from cars to telecommunications and energy. Listed on the Egyptian stock exchange, Elsewedy Electric has telecommunications. As a result, Elsewedy Electric successfully integrated into the global market without was able to become the leading producer of cables and transformers in Algeria by setting up as a pioneer in distancing itself from the family that founded it and the country where it was launched 80 years ago. The 2002. This position has enabled it to establish itself Cables are the heart of Elsewedy Electric’s business, with nine factories in Egypt, but are no longer the main driver of the company’s growth
10
THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
113
AFRICAN COMPANIES
throughout the entire energy production and distribution chain and to participate in major projects such as the Algiers airport and metro. If Elsewedy Electric is thinking about the construction of new production units in Asia, its strategy is also about regaining export markets, particularly in Africa, where Chinese competition on prices is fierce. The international certifications for its products have helped Elsewedy to compete, and the devaluation of the Egyptian pound also boosted its sales outside its domestic market.
must be much more sophisticated and decentralised than they are today in order to deliver and store electricity according to demand. For the moment, the Egyptian company is developing smart meters for its local market of 97 million inhabitants, and for Europe through its Slovenian subsidiary Iskraemeco, acquired in 2008. “We have taken this global trend into account, and we want to improve on the other components of smart grids,” says Wahby. In the meantime, Elsewedy Electric has positioned itself as one of the key investors in the world’s largest solar park, which is under Riding the pound construction in Benban, southern Egypt. By the end of this year, its six million solar The currency devaluation, at the end of 2016 km2: size of the was a double-edged sword for Elsewedy, which panels will cover an area of nearly 37km2 and world’s largest solar makes a large part of its sales in dollars and could supply up to 350,000 inhabitants with park, being built euros. In 2017, its turnover in Egyptian pounds electricity. The production will be managed in Benban, Egypt with jumped by 74%. Elsewedy safeguarded its by Elsewedy Electric and France’s EDF, which investment, from profits, with a 15% net margin compared to will sell it to the Egyptian public electricity Elsewedy Electric 16% in 2016. At the same time, the firm was company for $0.084 per kWh, a price aligned hit by rising copper prices. In 2018, sales stagnated at with those of the French company in France. E£42.49bn ($2.5bn), with an 11.7% net margin. It is precisely this type of international partnership that Elsewedy Electric intends to develop in order to With the currency losing half its value, Elsewedy Electric’s products have become cheaper than Indian, gain a foothold in the renewable energy market. At the dawn of the rush, and against giants such as Prysmian Chinese or Turkish imports. In addition, the trade and Siemens, Elsewedy Electric is betting on gradual agreements signed by Egypt with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the adaptation without abandoning its history as a cable European Union give it privileged access to these marsalesman – the reason for its success. kets. This is enough to offset the increase in copper prices. Elsewedy Electric is also just beginning to shift to smart grids, which are growing rapidly thanks to renewable energy. Since solar and wind energy production is intermittent, grids
37
AN AMBITIOUS ENGINEER When Ahmed Elsewedy took over the management of family affairs in 1986, he already knew the small trading company created by his father in 1938 by heart. Apprenticed during his studies as an electrical engineer at Cairo University, he gradually rose through the ranks. That lucrative cable business became Arab Cables, the number-one manufacturer in the sector in Egypt. But this was not enough for the young Ahmed, who dreams of new markets. In Zambia, Ghana and also in the Middle East, he built several factories. In about 10 years, the group
YOUTUBE/CRÉDIT AGRICOLE
TOP
Ahmed Elsewedy: a son with vision
grew from a single factory to about 30 sites. Ahmed renamed the company Elsewedy Electric, and it joined the club of the world’s major cable producers like Prysmian and Nexans. He pushed the company – listed on the stock exchange in May 2006 – to operate along the entire electricity chain, from production to energy distribution. Today, the multinational
114 THEAFRICAREPORT / N° 108 / JULY-AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2019
company operates in seven sectors: cables, electrical products, telecoms, transformers, wind power, turnkey installations (from engineering to distribution) and energy management solutions (smart grids). This globetrotter chairs the Egyptian business councils focused on China, Lebanon and Ethiopia.
A.L.