The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has granted unconditional approval for the acquisition of Mace Consult Holding Limited by Consult Bidco Limited.
The green light was given after an analysis concluded that the deal is not expected to substantially lessen or prevent competition within the market for project management consultancy services.
The acquiring entity, Consult Bidco, though a newly incorporated vehicle, is ultimately steered by the formidable and recognized Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Its target, Mace Consult Holding Limited, which is incorporated in the US, operates in Kenya through its local affiliates Mace Management Services Limited and Mace YMR Limited Liability Partnership.
These firms provide critical project management expertise for construction and infrastructure projects in the country. The transaction will see Consult Bidco acquiring the entire share capital of Mace Consult Holdings, a move anticipated to generate operational efficiencies and accelerate the growth of Mace as a standalone business.
With the combined assets of both parties exceeding one billion shillings, the acquisition qualifies as a merger. CMA’s analysis meticulously defined the relevant market, identifying it as the national-level provision of project management consultancy services.
This market is characterized as highly fragmented, populated by numerous small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) vying for private sector clients and multinational firms that consistently secure large-scale public sector and donor-funded projects.
Competition varies significantly: smaller projects are fiercely competitive and price-driven, whereas larger, more complex endeavors are awarded based on technical expertise, proven experience, and financial capacity.
Competitive dynamics are also shaped by significant international participation, with foreign consultancy firms frequently entering the Kenyan market through joint ventures with local partners to compete for major infrastructure and Public-Private Partnership (PPP) projects.
This has created a diverse and crowded field featuring both local and international players such as Turner & Townsend, Deloitte East Africa, AECOM, Faithful-Gould, and IBM Consulting, among others.
Since Consult Bidco is purely a financial investor with no existing operations in project management consultancy, the market share of the merged entity remains unchanged after the transaction.
Consequently, the acquisition is seen as a financial investment that poses no threat to competitive equilibrium, enabling a major international player to fund infrastructure growth without distorting competition.
