Chilean aquaculture firm AquaChile reported positive financial results in the first half of 2017, a year after a devastating algal bloom had the company seeing red.
During the first six months of 2017, AquaChile recorded net income of USD 23.3 million (EUR 19.4 million), compared with a loss of USD 37.6 million (EUR 31.3 million) in the same period last year.
AquaChile said its positive results were the outcome of lower operational costs and higher prices it has received for its farmed trout, Pacific salmon, and tilapia.
“The improved results have enabled AquaChile to strengthen its balance sheet and amortize financial debt,” the company said.
In the first six months of the year, the Company's net financial debt decreased 24.6 percent compared to a year ago, to USD 179.1 million (EUR 149.2 million).
Meanwhile, AquaChile’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the first half of 2017 amounted to USD 76.4 million (EUR 63.7 million), due to “increased margins of sales of all species,” according to the Company.
In the January-June period, the company's consolidated sales amounted to USD 317.6 million (EUR 264.7 million), up 13 percent on the first half of 2016, while operating costs decreased 18 percent.
AquaChile was founded in 1988 and has grown to employ approximately 5,000 workers. With operations in Chile, Costa Rica and the United States, it has become a prolific producer of Atlantic and Pacific salmon, sea trout, and tilapia, shipping its products across five continents to more than 30 countries.
