Goddy Egene
BUA Cement Plc has appointed a finance professional with over 26 years experience, Mr. Jacques Piekarski as its chief financial officer (CFO) effective October 2, 2020. Prior to his appointment, he was Group CFO at TGI Group.
Commenting on the appointment, the Chairman, BUA Cement Plc, Abdul Samad Rabiu, was quoted in a statement to have said: “The board is confident that Piekarski’s broad experience, strong leadership capabilities and understanding of the industry will ensure that BUA Cement is well positioned to take advantage of available opportunities to drive improved operational performance and sustain our profitable growth trajectory.”
In his comments, Managing Director/CEO of BUA Cement Plc, Yusuf Binji, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Piekarski to BUA Cement. Peikarski brings a wealth of experience to this role – both in the Nigerian cement industry and the African region as a whole. I am certain his skills and experience will make a significant contribution and continue to drive the company forward.”
Over the course of his career, BUA Cement CFO has had significant achievements in setting-up or re-organising finance departments, financing (loans, bond, rights issue, debt restructuring and re-financing), revenue and cost optimisation programs, various expansion and projects including ERP implementations, and controlling. He is known as a charismatic, results driven and dynamic leader, with a strong business acumen.
Prior to joining BUA Cement, he was Group CFO for TGI Group Nigeria, one of the largest Food and Agri privately owned conglomerate in the country. He joined this role from Flour Mills of Nigeria where he was also Group CFO. Piekarski has also garnered an extensive knowledge of the cement industryform his time as the CFO for Holcim (today LafargeHolcim) in Egypt with a joint venture with the Orascom Group.
In this role, he was actively involved in building-up the finance department, financing the plant expansion and monitoring its budget, implementing Holcim financial standards and a vast cost reduction program. During his tenure, the plant was the second largest single plant in the world with 8mt capacity.
A Swiss and French National, Piekarski was born in Switzerland. He is a graduate from the Business School in Lausanne, Switzerland, and holds an MBA from the Robert Kennedy College, Zurich, Switzerland.
Piekarski is the President of the Swiss Nigerian Business Council in Lagos and speaks fluent English and French, and conversational German.
