BOC Gases Nigeria Plc has joined Linde Plc, the parent company of Linde Group, which now holds indirect beneficial ownership in BOC Gases.
The company in a notification to its shareholders and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) said that by the virtue of the merger between Linde Aktiengesellschaft (Linde AG) and Praxair Inc, Linde Plc has become the parent company of both organizations. The merger was concluded on the October 31, 2018.
According to the notice, Linde Plc now holds an indirect beneficial interest in BOC UK and also, indirect beneficial ownership in BOC Gases Nigeria Plc, through its 92 percent interest in Linde AG.
“We confirm that following the merger, BOC UK will continue to hold all the shares it currently holds in BOC Gases Nigeria PLC, and that none of these shares will be transferred by BOC UK to any other person as a direct consequence of the merger. BOC Holdings Limited UK holds 249.75 million shares representing 60 per cent of the issued shares of BOC Gases Nigeria,” the statement said.
Linde AG is a company registered in Germany and listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange while Praxair Inc. is a company registered in the United States and listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
The Linde Group is a world leading supplier of industrial, process and speciality gases and one of the most profitable engineering companies. Linde products and services can be found in nearly every industry, in more than 100 countries.
BOC Gases Nigeria Plc was established in Lagos, under the name of Industrial Gases Plc (Nigeria) Limited (IGL) in 1959. The company is the market leader in West Africa for production and distribution of industrial gases, including argon, nitrogen carbon dioxide and oxygen as well as welding products. In 1997, Industrial Gases Plc changed to BOC Gases Nigeria Plc. In 2006, The Linde Group AG, a global leader in gases, engineering and technology solutions, acquired 60 percent of BOC Gases Nigeria Plc with the balance being held by Nigerian shareholders. As a member of the Linde Group, BOC Nigeria also has access to the continent’s biggest industrial gases and welding products group, African Oxygen Limited (Afrox), which operates in South Africa and 10 other African countries.
