Nordic Aqua’s China project on track, says company

Nordic Aqua Partners has said the development of its land-based salmon farm near Shanghai in China is proceeding according to plan.

Presenting its second quarter results, the company announced that Stage 1, comprising an annual production capacity of 4,000 tonnes, will be completed in the first quarter of 2024.

Capital expenditure during the April to June period totalled 29 million Danish kroner (£3.3m); the operation also enjoyed good biological performance for all batches with the first batch reaching an average weight of 900 grams this month.

The company had available liquidity of DKK 475m (£54m) at the end of June, including cash and undrawn credit facilities.

CEO Ragnar Joensen, said: “The second quarter of 2023 was another eventful quarter for Nordic Aqua. Overall, the production went according to plan, and we continued the important work of increasing management capacity and expertise as we continue to grow.

“The overall status at the end of the second quarter is that the Nordic Aqua team with strong support from local authorities and in collaboration with leading industrial partners is positioned for the first harvest at the end of the first quarter of 2024.”

Nordic Aqua continued to develop the organisation during the quarter, adding additional farming competence through the hiring of Orfa Elizabeth Cabrera Espinoza, a Chilean national with extensive experience with RAS based salmon farms in both Chile and Australia.

It also initiated building of the sales organisation, hiring Dan Tan, a Chinese national with extensive experience within sales and marketing of Atlantic salmon in the Chinese market.

The first inlay of Atlantic salmon eggs at the Ningbo plant took place in March 2022. New batches have been introduced every three months and as of August, the facility holds six groups of fish.

The report said biological performance has been very good for all batches, and average weight on fish from the first batch has now reached 900g. The first harvest remains on schedule for Q1 2024.