Kaldvík appoints interim CFO after warning of financial issues risk

Kaldvík—formerly Ice Fish Farm—announced yesterday that Hjalti Hvítklett has accepted the position to serve as its interim Chief Financial Officer (CFO). His appointment comes after the resignation of the current CFO, Róbert Róbertsson, last December.

Róbertsson, who has served as Kaldvík's CFO for the past five years, is leaving the position to join fellow Icelandic salmon producer Arnarlax. However, according to the statement sent to the stock exchange in December announcing his departure, he will remain available to his current company until February 28, 2026.

Hjalti Hvítklett's new role as interim CFO will take effect on February 1, 2026, so it appears that February will be a month of transition in which both CFOs will coincide.

Kaldvík's new CFO, who currently also holds positions as a member of several boards of directors, as well as being president of Globe Tracker—a company specializing in telematics and sensor data solutions for supply chain visibility—is a professional with extensive experience in similar positions.

Among others, Hvítklett has held the position of CFO and Finance Director at Nordic Aqua Partners and CFO at P/F Pelagos. Now, in Kaldvík, he will support the company's strategy and growth plan in the upcoming period, while it continues its search for a permanent Chief Financial Officer.

"The company may be in risk of breaching one or more of its financial covenants"

The new interim CFO joins the Icelandic salmon producer at a delicate time for its finances. Just days before announcing his appointment, the company had issued another statement to the stock exchange warning of financial issues risk.

In it, Kaldvík stated that, following the third-quarter presentation, multiple factors have negatively affected its outlook for the first quarter of 2026, including, among others, the early harvest and external factors such as lower salmon prices.

"As a result, the company may be in risk of breaching one or more of its financial covenants in its senior bank debt facility, in Q1 or at a later stage in 2026," the statement read.

The year 2025 was a very eventful one for Kaldvík, both in a positive and negative sense. After starting the year with the acquisition of several key assets in the fish farming value chain, in June, it announced that it had successfully completed a private placement worth approximately EUR 46.2 million, but shortly thereafter reported losses in the second quarter, in addition to reducing its 2025 harvest forecast to 18,000 tonnes.

At around the same time, it was announced that its CEO, Roy-Tore Rikardsen, had resigned with immediate effect, and Vidar Aspehaug had been appointed as interim CEO. Shortly afterwards, there was more good news with the extension of ASC certification to two more farms, bringing the Icelandic salmon producer's total number of ASC-certified farms to seven.

Finally, as mentioned above, the year ended with the announcement of Róbert Róbertsson's resignation as CFO. His replacement will now be responsible for steering the company's new moves in light of the announced financial risk. In its note to the stock market, the company reported that, for the purpose of preparing for a potential breach, it has initiated a dialogue with its lenders and will request a covenant waiver.