IBL Group, a multinational conglomerate led by Mauritian multimillionaire businessman Arnaud Lagesse, plans to increase its investments in East Africa as it expands its renewable energy portfolio and healthcare investments.
According to BusinessDaily, the Mauritian conglomerate is now looking to buy majority stakes in a solar firm and a pharmaceutical distributor, both of which operate in East Africa, to strengthen and diversify its operations and earnings.
“IBL wishes to inform its shareholders and the general public that IBL Energy Holdings Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary) has signed a letter of intent with a financial co-investor for the proposed acquisition of a majority stake in a solar solutions services provider operating in East Africa,” the company stated in a notice.
The
move to step up its investment in East Africa comes more than six months after IBL partnered with French financier Proparco and German sovereign wealth fund DEG to acquire a significant stake in Kenya’s leading supermarket chain Naivas International.
The targeted companies’ identities were not disclosed, but it added that the transaction, which is subject to a number of conditions, including obtaining the necessary corporate and regulatory approvals and meeting all legal requirements, is in line with its strategy to develop and grow its existing business in East Africa and in green energies.
IBL is a renowned, multifaceted Mauritian conglomerate with subsidiaries that work in the engineering, aviation and shipping, financial services, logistics, retail, seafood, and marine industries.
In addition to serving as directors, Arnaud Lagesse and his siblings Benoit, Hugues, Jean-Pierre, Thierry, and Stephane Lagesse own a 16.8-percent joint stake in the group, or 114,369,469 shares.
The Port Louis-based diversified conglomerate reported a profit of MUR1.96 billion ($43.8 million) at the end of its 2022 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, a 1,917-percent increase over the MUR97.4 million ($2.2 million) profit earned from operations last year.
