Scots perform well despite gill issues
Marine Harvest Scotland suffered £1.47 million worth of mortalities “due to AGD, lice treatment, PD and algae blooms”, according to today’s Q3 report.
Despite this, however, MH Scotland was amongst the group’s best performers both in terms of harvest volumes and operational EBIT.
Harvest volumes for the quarter were 16,586 tonnes – up from 13,740 tonnes in the same period last year and Scottish production achieved an EBIT of NOK 6.14/kg (£0.47/kg), down from NOK 9.94 (£0.77) in Q3 2014.
According to today’s report: “The reduction in margin is a result of reduced prices and increased costs due to mortality and biological challenges…The strengthening of the GBP towards the NOK has contributed further to reduced competitiveness for Scottish salmon. Compared to the third quarter of 2014, the feed cost has been slightly reduced in local currency due to improved feed conversion rates. Other sea water costs have in local currency remained stable year-over-year”.
Nevertheless a price achievement of 104% compared to the reference price was seen as a good performance and 92% of the group’s Scottish salmon were in the “superior” category.
Operational EBIT for the farming operations was NOK 57m (£4.4m), markets NOK 43m (£3.3m) and consumer products NOK 3m (£232,000).
Looking ahead, 16,000 tonnes are expected to be harvested in Q4, which would make the annual total 52,000 tonnes. This is currently predicted to increase to 56,000 tonnes in 2016.
