Nordic Halibut set for stock exchange listing

Nordic Halibut is hoping to raise up to 270 million kroner (£23m) by listing on the Oslo Stock Exchange’s Euronext Growth market.

The halibut fish farming company has engaged Pareto Securities and SpareBank 1 Markets to prepare for a planned private placement of new shares. The price per share has been set at NOK 22.50.

Nordic Halibut said the net proceeds from the transaction will be used, subject to availability of debt financing, to fund the company’s growth plan. This includes a new land-based facility for broodstock, juvenile and on-growth, the expansion of its sea operations at Edie and the establishment of VAP capabilities, as well as for general corporate purposes.

Subject to a successful completion of the private placement and the necessary approvals, Nordic Halibut will list its shares on Euronext Growth Oslo shortly after the issue with the first trading day expected to be Friday, 9 April.

The minimum application and allocation amount has been set to the NOK equivalent of 100,000 euros. But the company said it may, at its sole discretion, allocate an amount below €100,000.

Nordic Halibut was established in 1995 and is a prime mover in the growing halibut farming industry.

With its main location near Averøy, south-west Norway, the company already has licences in place to produce a total volume of 4,500 tonnes on an annual basis.

Nordic Halibut says it is fully integrated in all stages of production, from eggs to sale and distribution of fully-grown Atlantic halibut, and has a well-developed value-chain ensuring strong biological control and very high product quality.

Nordic Halibut’s move, along with planned expansion at Norcod, is another pointer that fish farming in Norway is moving beyond traditional salmon and trout.