Aker BioMarine plans spinout for krill feed business

Krill harvesting company Aker BioMarine announced last night that it has entered into an agreement with the US buyout fund American Industrial Partners to sell ownership in its feed ingredients business. The deal is based on an enterprise valuation of US $590m (£463m).

The acquiring party will be a newly established company, as yet unnamed, owned 60% by American Industrial Partners and 40% by Aker Capital.

The move follows the announcement in February of a strategic review of its ownership position in the feed ingredients business.

Following the transaction, Aker BioMarine said it will be a focused human health and nutrition company consisting of three business units: Human Health Ingredients; Consumer Health Ingredients; and Emerging Businesses.

An Oslo Stock Exchange announcement last night said the move would create significant shareholder value. Aker said the spinout is an important step in crystallising value and will enable Aker BioMarine to focus on the human health and nutrition business.

Matts Johansen, CEO of Aker BioMarine said: “We are pleased to announce the sale of our ownership position in the feed ingredients business.

“This transaction is the result of a process that attracted interest from a wide range of reputable parties and not only demonstrates the value of Feed Ingredients but also underscores the value potential of Aker BioMarine as a whole.”

He added: “ We will continue to explore how we can drive shareholder value by enabling potential partnerships and transactions for each of the remaining business units.”

Aker BioMarine describes itself as the world’s leading supplier of krill and a leading biotech innovator in developing krill-derived products for consumer health and wellness.

Its feed ingredients are marketed as Qrill Aqua and Qrill Pet.

The company expects the transaction to be completed during the third quarter of this year, subject to obtaining the necessary competition clearances.

Krill