Honeywell Flour Mills of Nigeria Plc, a Nigerian agro-allied group led by Greek investor John Coumantaros, has announced the acquisition of a 71.69 percent stake in Honeywell Flour Mills as well as a 5.06 percent stake in the firm for N4.2 ($0.01011) per share, after months of negotiations and proper documentation preparation.
Industrialist Obafoluke Otudeko, the founder of Honeywell flour mills, collected a total of N22.24 billion ($53.55 million) from his stake in the acquisition when it was completed.
Honeywell Flour Mills, a leading flour and pasta product manufacturer that is part of the Honeywell Group, has a diverse product portfolio that includes Honeywell Semolina, Honeywell Noodles, and Honeywell Pasta. Otudeko owns 66.8% of Honeywell Flour Mills.
According to Otudeko, the acquisition is in line with the company's objective of establishing a firm that better serves Nigerian clients. He said that he would work closely with Flour Mills of Nigeria to ensure seamless integration, laying the groundwork for the combined company's success.
Following a succession of dividend payments and remuneration from his business since its beginning nearly four decades ago, Otudeko's final attempt to unlock wealth from his share was the acquisition of a majority ownership in the Nigerian miller by Flour Mills of Nigeria.
As a result of the recent acquisition, Flour Mills of Nigeria will be able to improve manufacturing capacity and establish synergies in order to supply better products to consumers.
Flour Mills' market-leading offerings, such as grain-based foods, sugar, and breakfast cereals, would be combined with Honeywell's extensive and differentiated portfolio of carbohydrate products to establish a powerful national champion in Nigeria.
The road to the sale and purchase of Honeywell Flour Mills began last year, when Otudeko faced a slew of issues emanating from his alleged shady dealings as chairman of the board of directors of First Bank of Nigeria Holdings.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ordered Honeywell Flour Mills to repay a loan it borrowed from First Bank within 48 hours after sacking him and others from the board of FBNH. According to a letter from the apex bank to the company (Honeywell Flour Mill), it needed to fully refund its liabilities to the bank within 48 hours or the CBN would take appropriate regulatory measures against the insider borrower and the bank.