Design for New Zealand King Salmon's open ocean farm.
New Zealand King Salmon.
New Zealand King Salmon (NZKS) has published its financial performance for FY24, which corresponds to the 12 months ending on the 31st of January 2024.
Despite its revenues increasing 12% more compared to FY23 and reporting a net profit of $28.5 million ($1.9 million in FY23), CEO Carl Carrington expressed that the year ended "slightly weaker" than expected.
"As a result of the changes to our production plans in FY22, we were aware we would have a period of smaller fish in the last quarter of FY24. Unfortunately, the size of the fish did create some challenges with export markets," he explained.
On the other hand, Carrington confirmed the company is already back to its normal size curve and with an eye on future expansion plans. Moreover, the report informs about a mortality reduction in the summer and the imminent beginning of its Blue Endeavor project.
In late February, NZKS received final Government approval to continue with its Blue Endeavour project, the first open-ocean salmon farm in New Zealand. But to get there, the company had come a long way beforehand.
After six years of waiting, in November 2022 NZKS won approval for its resource consent application to the Marlborough District Council, but the decision was immediately appealed by the McGuinness Institute think tank, as well as the New Zealand Department of Conservation, which proposed several conditions for that approval. This led NZKS to request mediation.
According to the company, Blue Endeavour could generate NZD 300 million in new revenue per annum. Therefore, regional economies will benefit from related activities such as boat servicing, and skilled jobs in farming, engineering, processing, and more.
"It’s great to finally have the consent, and we can now focus on the next steps for the Blue Endeavour project. The focus for FY25 is to complete the monitoring and to order the equipment for a pilot farm," the CEO concluded.