THE GAME CHANGER: EXPECTATIONS HIGH AS BUA’S NEW SOKOTO CEMENT FACTORY BEGINS OPERATION, SET FOR COMMISSIONING, WATCH VIDEO

When in October, 2023 the Chairman of BUA Group, Abdul Samad RABIU declared that he was going to bring down the price of cement, many Nigerians hailed the move being a major stakeholder, while skeptics especially in the construction industry were quick to say that it was not doable.
The crux of their argument was that he didn’t control the larger chunk of the market and so it would be impossible to force down the price of cement.
Despite the noise against the move, the BUA Chairman went ahead to drop the price of his own product, BUA CEMENT, a move which caught other players unaware and forced them to adopt many unwholesome strategies to counter the move in order to protect their share of the market.
While announcing the price slash, BUA had indicated that its new factories will come on stream early 2024 and this will further enhance its resolve to ensure that cement was made affordable.
A few days ago, history was made in Sokoto as BUA Cement Line 5 factory began operation.

What this means is that BUA by the time the new plant settles in, would have upped its game by controlling a larger chunk of the market. With the start of operations on Monday, December 18, 2023, the Sokoto cement plant Line 5 has demonstrated BUA Cement’s dedication to its expansion goals. In addition, its operations brings the company’s installed capacity closer to the estimated 17 million metric tons annually. As expected, soon as ongoing stabilisation of production are completed, the company aims to reassess prices in the first Quarter of 2024.

This in itself is a big achievement not just because it beat the deadline the company gave for the completion of the plant. The implications are multidimensional. The BUA Chairman has again proved that he is a man of his words and that beyond mere public statements, businessmen should be seen to place the interest of their nation and its people as paramount. Raising people’s hopes with promises on products, service delivery, even in private businesses is something, delivering on such promises is the the true essence of astute businessmen.
The singular act of deciding to force the price of cement down, in an effort to ease the pain of the masses and help shore up the efforts of the government to grown the country’s economy is a major sacrifice that many Nigerians have come to identify with the BUA boss for.
As Nigerians await the official commissioning of the new cement factory, one thing that is obvious is that it would undoubtedly be a game changer.
Prior to its completion, the Federal Government under Buhari had appraised the BUA Group Chairman as the largest employer of labour in the Northern part of Nigeria. This position is further strengthened by the commencement of operations of the new cement factory.