Construction of Phase 2 of Nordic Aqua's Gaotang facility in Ningbo, China.
Photo: Nordic Aqua Partners.
Nordic Aqua Partners - the Norwegian land-based Atlantic salmon producer with its farm located in Ningbo, China - announced it has entered a short-term credit facility of EUR 13 million with DNB Bank ASA and Coöperative Rabobank U.A.
This is a short-term loan - the credit line has a term of seven months - that will be used to support the company's construction process, production strategy, and general corporate purposes.
This EUR 13 million will be in addition to the EUR 29.7 million the company raised last September, after the successful completion of a private placement. The land-based salmon producer said then that, together with indicative debt financing and cash on hand, these funds will fully finance the estimated construction of Phase 2 of its farm on Gaotang Island, Ningbo.
However, although the completion of the construction of Phase 2 of its land-based RAS facility was going to be the main destination of those funds, the company then said that it will also serve general corporate purposes, pay down short-term debt, increase working capital, and what the company defined as "geosmin improvement capex."
Nordic Aqua, which started 2024 with its first harvest and the launch of its trademark 'Nordic PureAtlantic', had a difficult second half of the year after facing an operational hurdle when an off-flavor problem required the company to pause harvesting until February 2025, when it overcame the challenges and successfully resumed sales of its premium salmon in the Chinese market.
The company's current business plan calls for an annual production of 20,000 tons (HOG). However, in his farewell message in early April announcing his decision to step down as CEO, Atle Eide said that as Nordic Aqua moves toward developing a 20,000-ton salmon farm, the team is setting its sights even higher.
"With a new target of 7 kilos average live weight, we are positioning ourselves to lead the ultra-premium segment of China's high-end Atlantic salmon market," Eide added then.
