Nigerian cement and sugar tycoon, Abdulsamad Rabiu, is $650 million richer after merging Kalambaina Cement, a subsidiary company of his BUA Cement, with publicly traded Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN), where he was the controlling shareholder.
As a result of the merger, CCNN emerged the best performing stock in percentage terms on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) in 2018.
Below are a few things to know about the owner of the second largest cement company with Nigerian origin after Dangote Cement.
1. Abdulsamad was born on 4 August 1960 in Kano State where he had his early education at Federal Government College, Kano.
2.
3. The billionaire established BUA International Limited in 1988 for sole purpose of commodity trading, that is importation of rice, edible oil, flour and iron and steel. In 1990, the then government-owned Delta Steel Company contracted BUA to supply its raw materials needs, for which BUA was paid with finished products. This contract provided the much needed funds for the young company to venture into steel, billets and iron ore importation, and supply of multiple rolling mills.
4. In 2008, BUA broke Dangote Sugar’s eight-year monopoly in the Nigerian market by commissioning the second largest sugar refinery in sub-saharan Africa. The company later acquired a controlling stake in a public company, Cement Company of Northern Nigeria, in 2009. This enabled BUA to commence construction of a $900 million cement plant in Edo State commissioned early 2015.
5. In 2013, Forbes estimated Abdulsamad’s wealth at $1.2 billion, bringing him to the global billionaire’s club.
6. Abdulsamad has a foundation called BUA Foundation for his philanthropic activities; he contributed towards the construction of the Centre for Islamic Studies at the Bayero University in Kano.
