Kenyan Bamburi Cement has defended its controversial shareholding in its main rival East African Portland Cement (EAPC).  Mr Michel Pucheros, the managing director of Bamburi Cement, said Larfarge - the French company that owns Bamburi had broken no law by owning a shareholding in EAPC.  "The Shareholding in our main rival is legal and I’m surprised that this is being cited as one of the reasons behind the management problems at EAPC," he said. 
 
Pucheros was speaking at the firm’s Athi River plant while launching a two-year road safety campaign targeting behavior change among truck drivers who deliver raw materials to Bamburi. 
 
Even though Larfarge, through Bamburi has 42 per cent stake at EAPC, Pucheros said it had never interfered with the pricing of cement. He also denied that Bamburi has been trying to stop EAPC from penetrating the Southern Sudan market as suggested by a section of the media.  "It is in our interest that EAPC remains strong because that should translate into better dividends for Bamburi," he said. 
 
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