Canada's Fairfax Africa Investments Proprietary Ltd has pulled out of its attempt to buy 23 per cent of South African cement producer PPC for ZAR2bn (US$146.34m), PPC said on Monday.

"On 8 December 2017, the Independent Board received Fairfax's formal notification that it will not proceed with the partial offer and that, accordingly, the Fairfax partial offer circular will not be posted to PPC shareholders," PPC said in a statement.

Fairfax offered to buy 23 per cent of PPC in September for ZAR5.75 per share, or ZAR2bn, on condition that it was approved by shareholders to allow a merger with South African rival cement maker AfriSam.