The company is targeting a monthly harvest volume of around 350 tons, aiming for a total of 3,400 tons this year.
Nutreco-backed land-based salmon farmer Nordic Aqua Partners is poised for its first commercial salmon harvest in March 2024.
The company announced the news on Wednesday in a note to the Oslo stock exchange following a successful test harvest of a five-kilogram fish at its Ningbo plant in China.
Despite recording an operating loss of €4 million in Q4 2023 and €8.2 million annually, the company demonstrated solid biological performance with a mortality rate below 1.6%.
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As of year-end 2023, Nordic Aqua produced a biomass of 469 tons in Q4, totalling 1,079 tons. The company is on schedule with its expansion plans, having completed the first construction phase and secured equity funding for the second stage, expected to double the capacity to 8,000 tons.
Commenting on the quarter’s developments Ragnar Joensen, CEO of Nordic Aqua, highlighted the company’s prospects following a successful private placement.
“We continued the important work of increasing management capacity and expertise as we continue to grow. During the quarter, we also conducted a successful private placement, strengthening our liquidity and securing necessary equity funding for the next phase,” he said.
Preparations for the third phase, aiming for a 20,000 tons capacity with the first slaughter in 2027, are well underway, according to the Nordic Aqua boss.
“The overall status at the end of the period is that the Nordic Aqua team, with strong support from local authorities and in collaboration with leading industrial partners, is all set for the first harvest at the end of next quarter.”
The firm’s liquidity stood strong at €37.7 million at the end of December 2023. As Nordic Aqua transitions to operational phases, it targets a monthly harvest volume of around 350 tons, aiming for a total of 3,400 tons in 2024.
