Kenyan tycoon Peter Muthoka sells his cargo company for $40M

Kenyan businessman Peter Muthoka has sold his airport cargo handling firm at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, a deal cleared by competition regulators and billed as a new entry into East Africa for international operator Celebi.

The Competition Authority of Kenya said it approved Celebi Cargo GmbH’s purchase of the entire issued share capital of Muthoka’s Transglobal Cargo Centre Ltd without conditions, saying it did not expect the transaction to reduce competition or trigger public interest concerns.

Transglobal operates at Nairobi’s main airport under the business name Africa Flight Services, widely known as AFS. The company provides ground and cargo services including handling and warehousing, work that sits at the heart of Kenya’s export machine for fresh flowers, vegetables and other time sensitive goods.

Celebi Cargo GmbH, the buyer, operates at Frankfurt Airport in Germany and handles about 200,000 tonnes of cargo a year, according to the regulator. The authority said the firm had not been active in Kenya before the deal, a factor that weighed in favor of approval.

Celebi Aviation, the parent, put the purchase price at $40.1 million, about 5.2 billion Kenyan shillings. In its statement, the company said the acquisition gives it a foothold in Kenya’s aviation services sector and a platform to expand in the region.

Regulatory disclosures show why the sale drew attention in Nairobi’s logistics circles. AFS is the largest export cargo handler at JKIA, controlling 33% of export volumes handled at the airport. Kenya Airways Cargo holds 22% of export handling, while other operators, including Signon Group and Swissport, split the remainder.

On the import side, Kenya Airways Cargo leads with 32% while AFS accounts for 20%, the regulator said. The rest is divided among competing handlers and a network of smaller agents that feed cargo sheds with everything from pharmaceuticals to electronics.

Because Celebi had no operations in Kenya before the transaction, the regulator said market shares are not expected to shift immediately following the takeover, limiting the risk of concentration. The authority also said the deal met Kenya’s mandatory notification threshold because the parties’ turnover or assets exceeded 1 billion shillings.

Celebi described the purchase as a bet on air cargo growth and the strategic role of Nairobi as a regional hub. The company said Kenya’s aviation market is forecast to grow about 5% a year over the next five years, outpacing the global average of 3.3% it cited from the International Air Transport Association. It also said JKIA accounts for roughly one fifth of Kenya’s annual air cargo volumes, which it put at about 400,000 tonnes.

Dave Dorner, Celebi’s group chief executive, called Kenya a gateway for trade and cargo flows across East and Central Africa. He said the company plans to blend AFS’s local experience with its operating systems and standards.

The competition authority said it does not expect the takeover to lead to job losses or harm small businesses directly, concerns that often surface around airport concessions and service contracts. Industry watchers will be looking for signs of new equipment, faster turnaround times and fresh investment at JKIA, where minutes on the ground can decide whether perishable exports reach markets in top condition.