Stock Exchange debut for Salmon Evolution
Land based salmon farmer Salmon Evolution began trading on Oslo Stock Exchange's Merkur Market today, after raising NOK 500 (£42.5m) in a share sale.
‘We are very pleased that the issue earlier this month aroused significant interest among both Norwegian, Nordic and international institutional investors,’ said Håkon A. Berg, CEO of Salmon Evolution.
‘We do not bounce champagne corks today. We are humbled that this is only one of many steps in a process where our clear ambition is to build a fish farming company that will help shape the global salmon industry. We believe we have what it takes to succeed.’
The Norwegian company’s initial production facility is under construction at Indre Harøy, near Alesund in Central Norway, and the capital raised will be used to finance the first phase.
Ambitions
This will provide capacity for 9,000 tonnes of fish per year, and when completed the plant will have a capacity of 36,000 tonnes. Salmon Evolution has ambitions to expand globally to 70,000 tonnes a year.
In July, the company entered into an investment agreement with Dongwon Industries, one of the world's leading seafood companies based in South Korea, where Dongwon will invest NOK 50 million (£4.3m) for a minority stake.
The two players plan to build a land-based fish farm in South Korea, producing 20,000 tonnes of salmon by utilising Salmon Evolution’s mix of flow-through and recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) technology.
Salmon Evolution’s Norwegian facility will be based on 65% recycling and 35% supply of filtered and temperate seawater.
