Lafarge Africa have received the shareholders endorsement for a merger with Unicem and Atlas Cement Company Ltd, according to Nigerian newspaper The Guardian.

"The merger is part of the asset consolidation we began in June 2014. It will solidify our market position in Nigeria particularly our presence in the South-South and South-East regions," said Michel Pucherchos, CEO of Lafarge Africa.

Unicem has a cement production capacity of 5Mta at its Mfamosing plant, whilst Atlas has a capacity of 0.5Mta. The overall cement production capacity of Nigeria has seen a significant increase from 4.3Mta in 2004 to 37Mta in 2014.