Nordic Aqua Partners – which is working on a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) salmon farm in Ningbo, China – said operations in Q4 2024 continued to be impacted by previous incidents of elevated geosmin levels that caused off flavors, but it has resumed harvesting after operational upgrades.
The company announced in June 2024 that 190 metric tons (MT) of its salmon harvest had been affected by the off flavors. Geosmin, while harmless, causes a strong flavor in salmon that resembles dirt or mud.
After grappling with the issue, the company said that it has regained its premium quality production and resumed its harvesting in February 2025. To resume harvesting the company installed new protein skimmers to remove particles in the water, new vacuum UV systems, increased ozonation capacity, created new biofilter protocols, added additional water capacity, and more. Capex related to the methods for solving the geosmin incident came in at EUR 19 million (USD 19.7 million), it said.
"We are pleased that our Ningbo facility is back on track and stronger than ever,” Nordic Aqua CEO Ragnar Joensen said. “With comprehensive corrective actions now in place, the Ningbo facility is fully optimized for sustainable, high-quality salmon farming.”
The company said its operational performance in Q4 2024 was good, and its mortality rate was sub1 percent. Nordic Aqua added that operational updates and upgrades have allowed it to produce 7 kilogram fish at scale without maturation.
“Overcoming operational challenges has demonstrated the resilience of the Nordic Aqua team and the robustness of our business model,” Joensen said.
The company said that construction of its stage 2 facility is still on schedule, and added that it had a successful EUR 30 million (USD 31.2 million) private placement to fund its continued development. The company estimates its capex for stage 2 will reach EUR 77 million (USD 80 million).
Financially, the company posted revenue of EUR 1.56 million (USD 1.62 million) in Q4 2024 – which has little to compare it to as the company had not sold product yet in Q4 2023.
Its EBITDA in the period represented a loss of EUR 4.3 million (USD 4.4 million), and its overall losses for the period reached EUR 1.8 million (USD 1.87 million).
The company said its production is back on track, and its sales and business efforts are beginning to build its salmon brand inside the Chinese market.
“I am grateful for the confidence of our stakeholders throughout the transition period in 2024, and we now look forward to a year of growth and value creation for our shareholders,” Joensen said.
