Ellah Lakes Targets Completion of ARPN Limited Takeover by December

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigerian agro-industrial firm, Ellah Lakes, is seeking to complete a deal to buy out Agro-Allied Resources and Processing Nigeria (ARPN) Limited, owned by Singapore-based Tolaram Group and Valuestar Holdings PTE, by December.

The transaction, which was announced last week, will see Ellah Lakes take over the ownership of 11,783 hectares of cultivated land, 2,093 hectares of cassava plantations as well as 10,393 hectares of farmland yet to be cultivated by year-end.

Ellah Lakes, which has been diversifying away from its original fish farming business since 2019 into the production of palm oil, rice and sugar as part of the board’s push to return the loss-making firm to profitability, is looking to expand operations and scale efficiencies through the deal.

“Following the completion of the Acquisition, Ellah Lakes will consolidate ARPN’s assets into its operations delivering immediate scale and financial benefits, while unlocking significant long-term potential for crop diversification and vertical integration,” the company stated.

“The acquisition aligns perfectly with Ellah Lakes’ vertically integrated business model, which spans primary cultivation, mid-stream processing and downstream market access,” it added.

Ellah Lakes has been recording losses since at least 2013, according to its financial reports, and had to wind down its original fish farming business around 2016 after militant attacks in the Niger Delta threatened operations.

New core investors, led by current CEO Chuka Mordi, acquired a majority stake in the firm in 2019. In the last six years, expansion activities have involved a joint venture investment in Ada Rice Company in Enugu State and a partnership with Lagos-based Montserrado Investment to build a 600-ton per day sugar-processing plant.

At an emergency general meeting in July, the board sought shareholders’ nod to raise N250 billion through equity capital to fund a strategic acquisition.

The deal to acquire ARPN requires approvals from regulatory authorities including the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission to reach consummation.

This acquisition will more than double our production footprint, accelerate earnings growth, and position us as a national champion in agro-industrial production,” Mr Mordi said

Madhukar Khetan, the managing director of ARPN, remarked that the buyout “highlights the strength of the platform we have created and its alignment with Nigeria’s food security objectives.”