A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has ordered all parties in the ongoing legal battle over the controversial sale of Lafarge Africa Plc.’s majority stake to Chinese firm Huaxin Cement Ltd. to maintain the status quo, pending the outcome of an appeal.
Justice Lewis Allagoa issued the directive on Wednesday, following a notice of appeal filed by Lafarge Africa Plc. The company is challenging an earlier ruling by the court that dismissed its objection to the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.
The suit was instituted by Strategic Consultancy Limited, a Nigerian firm and shareholder in Lafarge Africa. The company is seeking to halt what it described as the “surreptitious” divestment of Lafarge’s 83.81 percent majority stake by the Swiss-based Holcim Group, the parent company of Lafarge Africa.
Strategic Consultancy argues that the transaction may violate several Nigerian laws—including the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission Act, and the Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) Act—particularly as they relate to the rights of minority shareholders and the involvement of unregistered foreign entities.
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During Wednesday’s court session, Babatunde Fagbohunlu (SAN), counsel to Lafarge Africa, informed the court that an appeal had been filed at the Court of Appeal, with records of proceedings already transmitted and an application for a stay of proceedings also lodged. He urged the court to halt all further proceedings in the substantive case until the appeal on jurisdiction is resolved.
Counsel to the second defendant, Mene Josiah, echoed this request, confirming he had also filed a notice of appeal and emphasising the need for a stay to prevent prejudice and ensure fairness to all parties.
Opposing the application, D.A. Awosika (SAN), counsel to Strategic Consultancy, argued that his client had not been served with any notice of appeal. Citing the Federal High Court Rules, he contended that a notice of appeal does not automatically stay proceedings. He maintained that Lafarge’s appeal only contested procedural grounds and did not address the central issues in the dispute. Nonetheless, he urged the court to protect the subject matter if it opted to grant any stay.
In his ruling, Justice Allagoa held that the subject matter of the suit must be preserved while the appellate court considers the jurisdictional challenge.
“In view of the notice of appeal, arguments by parties on both sides, and because of the need to protect the subject matter in this case, I hereby order that the status quo be maintained,” the judge ruled.
The matter was adjourned to October 9, 2025.
Read also: Nigerian investors hold 16.19% in Lafarge Africa, MD tells Senate
Lafarge Africa is one of Nigeria’s leading cement producers and a key player on the Nigerian Exchange. Its dominance in the sector was solidified through the acquisition of three state-owned cement firms during the privatisation wave of 2001 and 2002
Holcim Group, which controls Lafarge Africa, had earlier disclosed to Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission that it was undergoing an internal restructuring. However, Strategic Consultancy alleges that Holcim’s sale of its 83.81 percent stake to Huaxin Cement was conducted in secrecy, without offering local shareholders, particularly minority investors, the right of first refusal or the chance to participate in the deal.
According to Strategic Consultancy, it only became aware of the transaction after significant steps toward its execution had already been taken. The firm accuses Lafarge Africa and its foreign majority shareholders of breaching Nigerian investment and corporate governance laws designed to ensure transparency and protect local investors.
The legal wrangle escalated on May 15, 2025, when Justice Allagoa dismissed Lafarge Africa’s preliminary objection to the court’s jurisdiction, paving the way for a full hearing of the substantive claims, a decision now under appeal.
