Namibia’s High Court has blocked a proposed merger involving Ohorongo Cement after overturning a government decision that had cleared the transaction despite an earlier prohibition by the country’s competition regulator.
The ruling reinstates a July 2025 decision by the Namibia Competition Commission (NaCC) prohibiting the proposed transaction, reversing an intervention by the Minister of Industries, Mines and Energy that had allowed the merger to proceed subject to conditions.
Judge Devittie issued the order on 1 October 2026 following an urgent review application brought by ITE Products (Pty) Ltd, Pharaoh Cement (Pty) Ltd and the Construction Industries Federation of Namibia.
The dispute centred on a determination signed by the Minister on 11 June 2026 and subsequently published in the Government Gazette.
The ministerial decision overturned the competition regulator’s prohibition of the proposed merger under case No. 2025FEB0004MER and permitted the transaction to proceed subject to conditions.
The High Court reviewed and set aside that determination, removing the ministerial approval on which the transaction had been allowed to proceed.
The court declared the Minister’s decision “unlawful, invalid and of no force and effect”.
It also ruled that the NaCC’s original determination prohibiting the merger, published on 17 July 2025, remains in full force and effect.
The decision represents a significant regulatory development for Namibia’s cement industry and restores the competition authority’s original position on the proposed consolidation.
The respondents in the case included the Minister of Industries, Mines and Energy, Whale Rock Cement, Schwenk Namibia, Ohorongo Cement and the Namibia Competition Commission.
The High Court finalised the matter and removed it from the roll.
The court order does not disclose the value, ownership structure or other commercial terms of the proposed transaction.
