New CEO to be incentivised with option package comprising 1,400,000 share options (the equivalent of approximately 1.25% of the outstanding shares in the company.
Land-based salmon farmer Atlantic Sapphire has appointed Pedro Courard as CEO.
Courard is an Industrial Engineer with a Master in Business Administration. He has been involved in the salmon industry in Chile for more than 25 years, holding different management positions, most of them related to production and operation.
During the last 15 years he has held management positions in different companies; he was the Managing Director of Ocea Chile (today Scale), Farming Director in Multi X and, since 2022, the Managing Director of Cermaq Chile, Chile’s second largest salmon producer.
In Cermaq, Courard has been part of the team that led the successful turnaround process of Cermaq Chile, positioning the company as a top performer in the Chilean salmon farming industry.
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“I am very pleased that after a long and thorough process Pedro Courard has been selected as my successor, said Atlantic Sapphire founder and CEO Johan Andreassen.
“Pedro has a strong operational track record from the Chilean salmon industry and I am convinced that he will be a good match to lead the Miami operations and take the Company to operational excellence in Phase 1 and beyond. The strategic position of Atlantic Sapphire is stronger today than ever, being the sole land-based salmon producer at scale in the vast and growing US market with a unique location that enables the Company to grow its production to unmatched scale, sustainably.”
Andreassen will remain in the CEO role until Courard has relocated to Florida and will also stay in the company for a period thereafter to secure a seamless transition.
“I am extremely excited and I feel honored to have been selected to lead the next steps of the largest land-based production project in the world, with all the opportunities and challenges it involves for me on a personal level. I’m convinced that land-based salmon farming has the potential to disrupt the aquaculture industry and solve many of the challenges that global protein production faces today,” said Courard.
Kenneth J. Andersen, Chairman of the Board of Atlantic Sapphire, said: “I am pleased to welcome Pedro Courard as our new CEO. With his addition, our management team is complete, and I believe it is the most experienced in the land-based salmon farming industry. Pedro’s expertise and leadership will be crucial on our path towards operational excellence and profitability in our current operations, as well as laying the ground for further growth investments.”
In order to optimally incentivize the new CEO, the Board of Directors intends to grant Courard an option package that consists of 1,400,000 share options (the equivalent of approximately 1.25% of the outstanding shares in the company following the proposed reverse share split) with a four-year vesting period, the first quarter of the package vesting upon grant and then annually thereafter.
The strike price will be calculated based on the average closing share price of the company over the next five trading days plus a 25% premium. This option grant is subject to the proposed renewal of the general share option plan being approved in the upcoming annual general meeting on May 23, 2024.
