AKVA Scotland figures up for first quarter of 2020
AKVA Scotland’s first-quarter revenue this year was well above that earned in the same period in 2019, the aquaculture supplier said today.
Revenue to Europe and the Middle East as a whole was NOK 131 million, up from NOK 73m in Q1 last year.
Overall, AKVA group saw a decline in revenue and profits in Q1 compared to the same period last year. Two recirculating aquaculture system deliveries were also cancelled, but the demand for the Tubenet concept is increasing and recently a contract worth NOK 100m has been signed.
RAS cancelled
AKVA group generated sales of NOK 752m (NOK 852m) in the first quarter, down 12% from Q1 2019.
EBITDA fell from NOK 97m in Q1 2019 to NOK 86m, and net profit fell from NOK 36m last year to NOK 21m.
Order intake for the quarter was NOK 709m with an order book of NOK 1.65 billion at the end of March 2020. Two RAS deliveries were cancelled in April 2020.
A dividend of NOK 1.00 per share was paid during the quarter. This happened on March 3, 2020, before the main outbreak of Covid-19 in Norway.
The acquisition of 70% of the shares in Newfoundland Aqua Services Ltd was completed in February 2020.
The AKVA group signed a strategically important Tubenet contract (with Mowi) in April 2020.
Early action on Covid-19
“On a global scale, the entire quarter has been affected by the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus,” the Norway-based company wrote in a stock exchange announcement in connection with its Q1 report.
“In the AKVA group we saw the need for action early on. The Group implemented several measures to ensure the health and safety of our employees and customers, to monitor and optimise the overall liquidity of the company, to maintain security of supply during the crisis and a steady order intake to ensure work for everyone in the AKVA group.
“Although it is too early to summarise the overall outcome of this crisis, AKVA group has seen moderate effects on operating activities and has a high order backlog at the end of Q1 2020 when we correct for cancellation of two major RAS deliveries.”
Cage Based Technology (CBT)
CBT revenues for the first quarter of 2020 ended at NOK 657m (689). EBITDA for the segment in the first quarter was NOK 81m (77). The EBITDA margin was 12.3% (11.1%). EBIT and EBIT margin ended at NOK 38m (36) and 5.8% (5.3%) respectively.
Revenues in the Nordic region ended at NOK 404m (493).
In the Nordic region, AKVA ended the quarter with an order intake of NOK 269m (372), and despite a decline from the same period last year, the region continues to experience high activity with a strong order backlog.
In the Americas region, activity is still at a relatively high level and the order book is growing. The region had a turnover of NOK 122m, which is on a par with the first quarter of last year.
Land-based Technology (LBT)
Revenue for the fourth quarter was NOK 79m (119). EBITDA for Q1 2020 was NOK 3m (12) and EBIT was NOK 0 (8). The EBITDA margin was 3.7% (10.1%) and the EBIT margin of minus 0.1% (6.8%).
Order intake in Q1 2020 was NOK 10m, compared with NOK 300m in Q1 2019. The order backlog for onshore projects continues to be strong, despite two RAS projects being cancelled in the first quarter.
The order backlog ended at NOK 605m compared to NOK 629m last year.
Atlantis Subsea Farming AS
In January 2016, AKVA group together with Sinkaberg-Hansen AS and Egersund Net AS established Atlantis Subsea Farming AS for the purpose of developing submersible fish farming facilities for salmon on an industrial scale.
The Atlantis Subsea Farming project requires large-scale testing of the technological and operational solutions. On February 22, 2018, the Directorate of Fisheries announced that the company has received a development permit. Atlantis Subsea Farming AS is now in a technology testing phase with regard to the implementation of the project, including testing with fish in the cage.
Order book
The order book at the end of the first quarter was worth NOK 1,650m (1,611). NOK 605m or 37% of total order backlog at the end of the first quarter is related to Land Based Technology (LBT).
“AKVA group remains focused on land-based food fish farms in RAS, despite a temporary setback in the China project. Our net service businesses are in the process of being expanded, as a new service station is to be built in Northern Norway with a partner and plans for further stations are being planned,” the company stated.
