One of Norcod's cod farms.
Photo: Norcod.
Norwegian cod farming company Norcod has released its operational update for the final quarter of 2025, revealing it is holding a series of fixed income investor meetings to explore a potential new bond issue.
The investor meetings may be followed by a NOK 750m four-year floating-rate senior secured green bond, subject to market conditions. Norcod said any net proceeds would be used in line with its Green Financing Framework.
Norcod said the cod market remains strong, with year-on-year sales prices up 31%, reflecting continued demand for farmed cod. The cod farming firm said its production in 2025 remained broadly in line with expectations, but it encountered a setback due to increased mortality at its Jamnungen site following a Vibrio infection, disclosed in the third quarter of 2025.
At the time, the company said the infection was caused by a bacterial strain not covered by current vaccines. Norcod said it treated the fish with medicated feed and worked with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority throughout the incident.
Norcod also previously reported it had decided to pause harvesting early in the third quarter to enable fish to reach better market weights, using the downtime to upgrade its processing plant at Kråkøy.
"We have aligned our future production plan at new and existing locations to have an ideal balance between spring and fall releases, which will ensure a stable 12-month production and harvest in the future. This results in a temporary lower level of biomass at sea but lays the foundation for profitable growth," Norcod stated in its Q3 release.
As a consequence of the elevated mortality and the delayed release of juveniles, Norcod said in its latest update this month that it expects a lower harvest volume in 2026. The company harvested 7,723 tonnes of cod in 2025 and estimates that volumes will fall to around 5,800 tonnes in 2026.
Norcod received a major investment boost during the autumn through a NOK 157 million investment from global retailer Jerónimo Martins - a Portuguese group which has also previously invested in Andfjord Salmon - giving Norcod direct access to major European supermarket chains.
"The investment from Jerónimo Martins and our strengthened sales partnerships give Norcod the reach and stability needed to realise this potential in a growing global market for farmed cod," Riber said at the time.
