Marine Harvest is set for an overall strong 2014 after recording an operational EBIT of NOK 912 million (US$139m) in the third quarter, compared to NOK 793 million (US$121m) in Q3 2013.
“I am pleased that the targeted strategy of reducing the dependency of spot prices paid off during the recent drop in salmon prices,” said Alf-Helge Aarskog, CEO. “As a consequence of the good results, the board has resolved a quarterly dividend of NOK 1.10 per share.”
Marine Harvest Group reported operational revenues and other income of NOK 6.2m (US$945,000) in the third quarter of 2014. Total harvest volumes were 107,333 tonnes in the quarter. Harvest guidance for 2014 is unchanged at 414,000 tonnes, while harvest guidance for 2015 is 430,000 tonnes, excluding the expected 15,000 tonnes production in Acuinova.
“The successful start-up of our first feed plant is a milestone for Marine Harvest in our effort to be a leader in the three areas fish feed production, farming and value added processing. I'm proud to say the factory is profitable from the first quarter of operations,” Mr Aarskog added.
Salmon of Norwegian origin achieved an operation EBIT per kilo of NOK 9.71 (US$1.47) in the third quarter, while salmon of Scottish and Canadian original reported operational EBIT per kilo of NOK 9.95 (US$1.51) and NOK 4.70 (US$0.72). Salmon of Chilean origin achieved an operational EBIT per kilo of NOK 6.06 (US$0.922).
The company has also strengthened its position in Chile with an agreement to buy 40,000 tonnes of integrated farming capacity. The yield is expected to be 15,000 tonnes in 2015. Marine Harvest says this is an important step in the consolidation of the salmon industry in Chile.
