June 22nd, 2010 by Tom Minney
Tunisian car retailer Ennakl Automobiles (www.ennakl.com), official distributor of Volkswagen, Seat, Audi and Porsche and part of the Group Princesse El Materi Holding, headed by Mohamed Sakher El Materi Holding, is offering 40% of its share capital for sale. This is preparation to a double listing of 30% of its capital on the Tunis stock exchange (www.bvmt.com.tn) and 10% on the Casablanca stock exchange (www.casablanca-bourse.com) in Morocco. The offer is open from 23 June – 2 July, according to a report on Tunis Online (www.tunisiaonlinenews.com).
The company is offering 12 million shares at 10.7 Tunisian dinars (US$7.06) in Tunisia and Dirham 64.22 ($7.16), for a total of TND 128.4 million ($84.7 million). Of the 9 million shares offered on the Tunis stock exchange, 4.4 million are secured for institutional investors.
According to the report, Mr. Mohamed Sakher El Materi, President of Ennakl, said the aim is to increase Princesse Holding group funds for developing its business interests, particularly in the financial sector. The press release says the group has created Banque Zitouna and is creating the Takaful insurance company. It also aims to bring the 2 exchanges closer and increase co-operation and financial exchanges between both countries.
Ennakl wants to expand during the next 5 years (2010-2014) by marketing Seat cars in 2010, Skoda in 2011 and diversifying its Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche brands. It also aims to boost its distribution network from 14 to to reach about 21 official agencies in 2011. It was established in Tunisia in 1965 and privatized in 2006, according to a company press release. It says it is the leading car distributor in the country and second in Africa for Volkswagen after South Africa.
Ennakl is expected to achieve almost TND 378 million turnover by 2010, up by 16% on TND 326 mln in 2009, and net profits TND 27 mln, up from TND 22 mln in 2009. It says it sold 9,617 light cars in 2009.
It would be the second car distributor on the Tunis bourse, after Artes.
July 30th, 2009 by Tom Minney
Emerging Capital Partners (ECP) announced on 27 July it has bought controlling stakes in Shoresal and Almes – both North African construction companies – for a total USD $26.2 million. ECP (www.ecpinvestments.com) is an international private equity firm focused on investing across the African continent with a nine-year track record and the first to raise more than $1.6 billion to invest in companies across Africa.
It is expanding its North African investments.
Thomas Gibian, chief executive officer of ECP, says: ”ECP has invested in various African engineering and construction companies since 2006, and we have long been evaluating opportunities in the North African market…Unlike many western markets, North African real estate and construction is generally driven by a lack of supply to meet the increasing demand from both foreign and domestic companies.”
In Algeria, ECP acquired a $13.8 million stake in Shoresal, a real estate development company, which will use ECP’s investment, in part, to finance the development of a 14-storey Class A office tower in the Bab Ezzouar business district of Algiers. According to the company’s research, demand for office space in Algeria’s major cities is approximately eight times greater than the current supply, driven by a tripling in the number of multinational companies since 2000.
The investment was made through ECP’s MENA Growth Fund LLC, which was established in September 2007 to capitalize on investment opportunities throughout the Middle East and North Africa.
In Morocco, ECP invested $12.4 million in Almes, the holding company of Entreprise Marocaine de Travaux (EMT) and Somadiaz. EMT specializes in public works infrastructure projects such as dams, levees and airports. Somadiaz is an equipment leasing company that provides specialized equipment to commercial and industrial clients. The companies will expand in Morocco and into neighbouring countries – such as Libya and Mauritania – where demand for public works and other construction services are also high. ECP’s investment is in partnership with Alliances Développement Immobilier, a leading integrated real estate and tourism group in Morocco.
The investment in Almes was made through the Moroccan Infrastructure Fund, a joint venture between ECP and Attijariwafa bank, which was established in December 2006 to capitalize on the ongoing reforms that are spurring economic growth in Morocco. It targets numerous sectors including telecoms, transportation, energy, power and water.
“ECP views the construction markets across North Africa as uniquely poised for growth,” said Vincent Le Guennou, executive vice president of ECP. ”We believe the strong supply and demand imbalance in the sector is a compelling reason to invest.”