Tanks at Nordic Aqua Partners' RAS farm on October 10, 2025, the day the Phase 2 facility started receiving fish.
Photo: Nordic Aqua Partners.
China's first commercial-scale RAS Atlantic salmon farm, Nordic Aqua Partners (NOAP), presented its Q3 2025 results report this week, announcing that it has reduced its total harvest guidance for 2025 to 2,000 tons, down from the 2,300 tons previously reported.
The decision is in line with the review of its production strategy, which targets larger fish for the growing Chinese market, announced by the company in May, coinciding with the presentation of its first quarter results, when it resumed commercial harvesting and the sale of its premium salmon.
As explained at the time, Nordic Aqua aims to achieve higher average harvest weights, around 7.0 kg LW, in order to secure a leading position in the Chinese high-end salmon market.
Now, due to expectations of higher prices entering 2026, combined with a substantial increase in available tank volume thanks to Phase 2, the company will delay harvests to allow fish to grow larger during the fourth quarter, accelerating the path to larger harvest sizes.
Regarding its third-quarter financial results, Nordic Aqua stated that, in Q3 2025, sales of its Atlantic salmon continued to receive positive feedback on quality from customers and consumers, while overall biological performance remained strong, with good fish health and high survival rates.
Specifically, sales in the third quarter amounted to EUR 3.5 million, with an average selling price of EUR 5.50/kg, down 18.39% from EUR 6.74/kg in the previous quarter, reflecting the overall decline in global spot prices for salmon and the fact that most of the harvest took place in August.
However, the company expressed satisfaction, emphasizing that the price achieved during the period was on average EUR 0.46/kg above the spot price in Norway, equivalent to a premium of 9%.
Thus, Nordic Aqua Partners' operating EBIT for the third quarter was negative at EUR 4.8 million, reflecting the early stage of commercial growth and continued investment in Phase 2.
In terms of operating results, NOAP achieved a commercial harvest of 630 tons HOG, with 98% superior quality. The average weight of the harvest was 3.1 kg HOG (3.8 kg LW), affected by biomass optimizations.
Driven, as mentioned, by good biological performance and excellent fish health and welfare, biomass production was 969 tons, while total biomass reached 2,835 tons at the end of the quarter.
All this in a quarter in which, as reported by WeAreAquaculture, Nordic Aqua carried out the first successful transfer of fish to the Phase 2 grow-out units, within the schedule planned for the first harvest in September 2026.
The Norwegian salmon farming company announced this milestone for its land-based farm in Ningbo, China, coinciding with the presentation of its Q3 2025 operational update in mid-October.
Another point highlighted by Nordic Aqua Partners in this presentation of its Q3 2025 results was that construction of Phase 2 is progressing according to plan.
In addition, NOAP said that, thanks to savings derived from the collaboration model with key stakeholders, including technology provider AKVA Group, the total CAPEX estimate is revised to EUR 65 million, down 16% from the previous EUR 77 million.
This good news comes on top of what the company shared in September, when it announced that it had secured "transformational financing" from Chinese investors—EUR 36 million—to expand its production capacity to 20,000 tons in Phase 3.
This expansion has been secured through a 30-year lease agreement for land and facilities. Nordic Aqua will use 2026 for detailed engineering and expects to commence construction in late 2026 or early 2027, subject to the final investment decision. The first harvest from Phase 3 is therefore expected in 2029.
"The third quarter marked an important step forward for Nordic Aqua. We continued to deliver premium-quality Atlantic salmon with good biological results and a 98% superior rate, confirming the robustness of our operations. At the same time, we advanced a transformational financing package with strong Chinese partners that strengthens our local platform and provides a clear pathway toward Stage 3 expansion," said CEO Ragnar Joensen, commenting on the results.
"With a cost-efficient Stage 2 project and clear visibility toward 20,000 tonnes of capacity, we are positioning Nordic Aqua as the leading local producer of sustainable Atlantic salmon for the Chinese market," he added.
The land-based salmon company added that overall biological performance, with very strong fish welfare and good feeding levels observed in the third quarter of 2025, continued into the fourth quarter.
Thus, Nordic Aqua Partners stated that, for the whole of 2026, it expects a total harvest volume in the range of 5,000 to 6,000 tons at its Atlantic salmon RAS farm in Ningbo, China.