Nova Austral announces $7.8m loss for Q2
Southern Chile salmon farmer Nova Austral slightly increased its revenues in the second quarter of 2020 to US $35.2 million but went from profit to a loss of $7.8m.
The 4% revenue increase from $33.9m in Q2 2019 was mainly due to higher volumes sold, which were partially offset by lower market prices, the Magallanes salmon farmer said in its Q2 2020 report.
Despite the disruption caused by Covid-19, the company harvested 5,400 tonnes of Atlantic salmon in the quarter. The 24,200 tonnes of fish produced in the 12 months ending June 30, 2020 was an increase of 23% compared to the same period in 2018/19.
Low prices
Ebitda before fair value adjustment fell from $7.6m in Q2 2019 to $3.4m in Q2 2020, affected by low market prices due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
EBIT before fair value adjustment fell 80%, going from $5.7m in Q2 2019 to $1.2m in the same period of this year.
The company went from a profit of $1.2m to a loss of $7.8m in the period, due to market situations linked to current sanitary restrictions, which raised its costs by 25% to $32.7m.
On August 10, Nova Austral’s bondholders approved the company’s liquidity plan, which involves extending the maturity period for $300 million worth of Nova Austral bonds from May 26, 2021 to November 26, 2026. As a consequence, the company will have to pay a higher rate of interest to bondholders.
Compliance manager
Nova Austral has also announced the appointment of lawyer Andrés Cuevas as compliance manager.
He has held similar positions for companies such as Samsung Electronics and Arauco, and has a law degree from Diego Portales University, executive MBA from Adolfo Ibáñez University and a postgraduate degree in law from the University of London.
In a press release, the company said Cuevas’ appointment “is one more step for Nova Austral in its commitment to transparency, and the implementation of the highest standards throughout its production chain to continue being a benchmark in the industry. In fact, it joins other measures developed by the company in this line, such as the launch of a Crime Prevention Manual, a new Code of Ethics and a Complaints Channel, which is available on the company’s website and that it is administered by a third party”.
£150,000 fine
Nova Austral is seeking to earn back credibility after an investigative news website revealed last year that it had been concealing the extent of salmon mortality at its farms.
The company lost its Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification and was later fined £150,000 by a court.
Nova Austral has since won Best Aquaculture Practice (BAP) certification for one of its farms, has committed all of its other sites to apply for BAP approval. It has also been accepted as a company to restart the certification process with the ASC.
