DNV buys second Chilean company in a week
Norwegian assurance and risk management company DNV has entered into an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Aquabench S.A., a leading provider of services, analytics, and insights to the Chilean salmon industry.
The announcement follows last week’s news that DNV had bought a majority stake in Aqualis, a major player within the inspection and certification of aquaculture infrastructure in Chile.
DNV said its latest investment will support Aquabench’s continued growth and give its customers access to even more advanced solutions, tools, and analytical capabilities.
'A unique position'
Aquabench holds what DNV said was a unique position in the Chilean aquaculture industry as a neutral and collaborative information platform, built on an extensive database of production, environmental and fish health data.
DNV said integrity and responsible handling of information will remain fundamental principles for Aquabench, and pointed out that the companies have a shared commitment to the highest standards of confidentiality, data security and data governance.
“With DNV as a majority owner, Aquabench will have an even stronger foundation for developing new offerings and delivery models, continuing to be a strategic support for the Chilean aquaculture industry and adjacent sectors,” said Geir Fuglerud, chief executive of DNV’s Life Sciences division.
Fish health
As part of what DNV calls its global ecosystem, Aquabench will be able to contribute to faster development of innovative services in areas such as fish health, biosecurity environmental analytics, and sustainability. One particularly important area will be the further development of collaborative fish health projects, which can create new opportunities for knowledge sharing and help address common challenges through development of best practice across markets and regions.
Digitalisation will be central to this new phase.
“Through DNV’s global experience in risk management, technology and assurance, Aquabench will be able to develop digital solutions faster and to a higher standard,” said DNV is a press release. “This will provide customers with more reliable information, more efficient processes and a stronger basis for decision-making, while giving companies deeper insight into production and operational conditions based on robust data and advanced analytics. "
Stronger role
“Aquaculture companies are facing increasingly stringent requirements related to traceability, sustainability and operational efficiency. This investment gives us the opportunity to strengthen our role as an independent knowledge partner and offer the industry increasingly digital, precise and future-oriented solutions,” said Joel Leal, general manager of Aquabench.
The investment will also support the further development of Salmobench, Aquabench’s digital intelligence platform for the Chilean salmon industry, providing a digital intelligence platform to support informed decisions throughout the value chain.
