Avramar's booth at the Seafood Expo Global 2023 in Barcelona. The Spanish-Greek company finally obtained the signatures for a EUR 20 million (USD 21 million) loan agreement it was waiting for.
Photo: WeAreAquaculture.
It was expected since last September when we learned that the lending banks urgently sought investors interested in Avramar, but it was not until last Thursday afternoon when, according to the information of Greek media Euro2day.gr, the aquaculture company finally obtained the signatures for a new EUR 20 million (USD 21 million) loan agreement.
This loan was an essential condition to start the sale process of Avramar, which, as we already reported, will be carried out by Deloitte, appointed as transaction advisor by the lending banks. Now, after the agreement with the banks and the provision of the loan, it is expected that the sale of the company will not take long to arrive since, as Euro2day.gr also reported at the end of January, as soon as Avramar obtained the first euro of the new loan, Deloitte would be "all set with the prospectuses to start the sale process."
In fact, the sources now mentioned by Euro2day.gr, assured there are already two investment funds that have informally expressed their interest in the group. April is expected to be a decisive month to know what will finally happen with the sale of what is the largest aquaculture company in the Mediterranean.
For all this to happen, Avramar's General Assembly had previously given the 'green light' for this interim financing of EUR 20 million from Alpha Bank, Eurobank, Piraeus, and National Bank - a preliminary agreement had already been in place since the end of January - to secure short-term financing to cover the company's working capital needs.
As we previously reported, the Spanish-Greek group needed banks to open this financing channel to remain valuable. Avramar's main asset is the fish used in its infrastructures, which requires liquid funds and available capital for feeding and maintenance. Any delays or unforeseen events can have a decisive impact on the decline of the fish population. The survival of the company depends on the survival of the fish and, therefore, this money is essential to maintain the value of the company for future sale.
In September it was already said that, in exchange for this financing, the shareholders - the Greek state investment fund Mubadala and the U.S. fund Amerra Capital Management - would cede the company to the banks, a precondition for the change of management. That change came immediately after the preliminary agreement, in mid-February, when ex-Amerra Eugenio Meschini was appointed CEO of Avramar. Following this, the banks are expected to negotiate directly with potential investors.
Avramar is the result of the union under one name of four leading companies from Greece and Spain and, consequently, the largest aquaculture company in the Mediterranean. The company offers full traceability of its sea bass, sea bream, rock bass (Meagre), and pagrus thanks to its fully integrated value chain due to its 10 hatcheries, 72 fish farms, 3 fish feed factories, 3 processing plants, 12 packaging facilities, and a worldwide distribution network to more than 700 customers in more than 30 countries.
*Sources:
– 'Υπέγραψαν Avramar-τράπεζες το δάνειο των 20 εκατ. ευρώ', Euro2day article by Αλεξάνδρα Γκίτση.
– 'Avramar: Επί της αρχής συμφωνία για δανεισμό και χρονοδιάγραμμα πώλησης', Euro2day article by Αλεξάνδρα Γκίτση.