PPC's acquisition of a 69.3% stake in Safika Cement Holdings for R377-million was unconditionally approved by the Competition Tribunal, the company said on Wednesday.
Safika presently produces over 20-million bags of cement annually, and PPC said the transaction, announced in August, will enhance PPC's South African footprint.
Safika owns five blending facilities and one milling operation that produce blended 32.5N cement under three brands: IDM Best Build, Castle and the Spar Build-It house brand.
Ketso Gordhan, PPC's chief executive, said the value-adding Safika transaction would ensure that PPC's strategy gained further impetus.
The company's strategy is to expand its revenue from the rest of Africa to 40% by 2016 from about 20%. But Gordhan said the deal was in line with its plans to grow its local capacity too, ahead of the planned infrastructure projects.
The company is looking to Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it presently has projects, to bring in growth. At the moment, more than 20% of PPC's revenue comes from these projects.
