KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Mexico-based cement giant, CEMEX, which acquired enough shares to take control of the Trinidad-based Trinidad Cement Limited (TCL) in January through subsidiary Sierra Trading, has made an application to the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) to delist the company’s stock.

In the interim, subsidiary Caribbean Cement Limited, which is based in Jamaica, will remain listed on the local Exchange. Additionally, TCL will remain listed on the Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados Stock Exchanges.

TCL consists of seven main operating subsidiaries in Trinidad, Barbados, Jamaica and Anguilla: TCL, TCL Packaging Limited , TCL Ponsa Manufacturing Limited, Readymix (West Indies) Limited , Arawak Cement Company Limited, Caribbean Cement Company Limited and TCL Trading Company, as well as other  direct or indirect subsidiaries, collectively known as the TCL Group.

CEMEX has production facilities spanning 50 countries in North America, the Caribbean, South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

At the time of a takeover offer made in December 2016, Sierra trading held 39.5 per cent of TCL, with the offer seeking to increase this total to 74.9 per cent of the cement maker and distributor.

Sierra Trading secured just under 70 per cent of the shareholding following the closing of its takeover offer on February 7.

In a notice to shareholders on Monday, March 6, the board of TCL advised that it had passed a resolution on February 23, 2017, authorising the company to make an application to the JSE pursuant to Rule 411B to delist the ordinary shares of TCL from the Exchange.

The application was made on March 2, 2017.  The delisting of TCL from the Exchange will be effective on a date to be determined by the JSE.

Rule 441 b of the JSE states that listed companies may make an application to the Exchange to be delisted or to suspend trading in its securities after the majority shareholder makes an offer buy out the minority shareholders. The company must be current in all its financial reporting to the Exchange.

Cemex previously said that if successful, TCL will continue operating as usual and remain listed. In this weeks’ notice, no explanation was given in the JSE notice for its decision to depart from the Jamaican market.

During the takeover process, the offer from Cemex was said by directors to be unfair – based on the assessment of Ernst and Young — even after the offer was increased by TT 0.57 cents to $5.07 up from $4.50 per share.

Avia Collinder