Russian Aquaculture, Russia’s largest aquaculture company, has purchased a second smolt production plant in Norway: Olden Oppdrettsanlegg AS.
The facility uses a flow-through system and can produce up to two million Atlantic salmon and trout smolt annually. Russian Aquaculture expects to receive the first shipment of smolt from the unit in 2018. The production facility has operated since 1995 and has been one of the main suppliers of Russian Aquaculture for several years.
The company views this acquisition as an important step toward building an efficient, vertically integrated holding and achieving the strategic goal of producing up to 25,000-30,000 tons of salmonids by 2025.
Together with Villa Smolt, which Russian Aquaculture acquired earlier this year, the company now has its own smolt to cover a material part of its supply needs, significantly reducing operating costs and biological risks.
Olden Oppdrettsanlegg had a turnover of EUR2.2 million (US$2.6 million) and an EBIT margin of 19 percent in 2016.
Russian Aquaculture plans to retain the personnel currently managing the facility. This acquisition will also enable the company to gain significant experience in the smolt farming business, which may be further utilized in the construction of a smolt plant in Russia.
“In a relatively short period of time, we have taken two important steps towards securing a stable supply with our own smolt. I am confident that this investment will strengthen our market position as well as decreasing operating costs and biological risks. We are very happy to have acquired this first-class asset, and welcome the opportunity to work together with Norwegian colleagues who are among our longest-standing partners,” said Ilya Sosnov, CEO of Russian Aquaculture.
