Inside one of the giant tanks at Harøy, where Salmon Evolution plans to grow 31,500 tonnes HOG annually. Photo: Salmon Evolution.

Salmon Evolution secures smolt plant financing

On-land salmon farmer Salmon Evolution has agreed a NOK 52 million (£4.39m) financing package from Nordea bank in relation to smolt producer Kraft Laks.

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Salmon Evolution, which plans to produce 31,500 gutted weight tonnes using a combination of flow-through and recirculation technology, bought Kraft Laks in August for NOK 76.5m.

With an annual production of around 1.8 million smolt and capacity for up to five million, the smolt plant is expected to meet Salmon Evolution’s smolt needs at its development on the island of Harøy on Norway’s west coast.

NOK 677m borrowed

The bank debt financing is split across three separate facilities and will be used as follows:

  • General corporate purposes (financing of working capital)
  • Investments relating to facility upgrades
  • Refinancing of existing NOK 25 million seller’s credit with previous owners of Kraft Laks

Together with the bank debt financing package announced in the second quarter of this year, Salmon Evolution has during the course of 2021 raised a total of NOK 677m in bank debt.

Salmon Evolution expects to introduce the first smolts into the Harøy facility in March 2022.