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Home / Eos Capital takes majority stake in pre-fab firm
Eos Capital takes majority stake in pre-fab firm
2017-09-20Staff Report 2 Eveline de Klerk Walvis Bay-Eos Capital has acquired 90 percent shares in a Walvis Bay-based insulated panel and prefabricated manufacturer, Panel to Panel. The deal is said to be worth several million dollars. The deal, which was clinched last Wednesday pending Namibian Competition Commission approval, aims to support the industrialisation drive of the country and to boost growth for the company through its widening product offering, establishing export market operations and developing additional business lines. Panel To Panel was founded by serial entrepreneur Francois Kotze in 2005. The company supplies insulated panels in their various applications, such as cooling rooms, sterile environments and prefabricated houses. Panel To Panel serves a diverse range of sectors, including the fishing industry, abattoirs, lodges, pharmaceutical plants and the public sector, making it fairly resistant to shocks in any one sector, making it attractive from a risk perspective. Eos Capital executive chairman Johannes !Gawaxab on Friday said Eos was keen in acquiring shares in the company due to the huge potential it has not in terms of industrialisation, but also in contributing to solving the housing shortage. According to !Gawaxab, pre-fabricated buildings can be used to provide additional classrooms and accommodation, especially in areas where pregnant women are sleeping in tents while waiting to give birth, he said. “There is lots of potential in Panel to Panel and we want to see it expand and contribute positively,” he said. Interestingly, there has been a 40 percent reduction in the import of prefabricated panels since 2012. This, according to !Gawaxab , clearly indicates yet another Namibian manufacturing success story. “This shows that Namibia is taking the right steps towards industrialisation and local value creation in line with the government’s Growth at Home strategy. We are proud to be associated with such a challenger firm,” he said. Jacques Crowther, Panel to Panel’s financial director, said: “There are plans to widen Panel To Panel’s product offering in the near future to serve a broader range of customer needs. We are looking forward to working with Eos to formalise and grow the business whilst maintaining the same excellent customer service and the passion for what we do.” 2017-09-20Staff Report 2
