Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland-headquartered land-based salmon-farming firm Laxey has raised USD 33 million (EUR 28.2 million) in private equity to begin constructing the second section of its flow-through salmon farm in Iceland’s Westman Islands.
The funding round is the company’s second successful share offering this year, bringing the amount raised so far in 2025 to USD 74 million (EUR 63.2 million), about half of which, the company said in a release, has come from new investors.
Iceland’s three largest pension funds, LSR – The Pension Fund for State Employees in Iceland, LIVE – the Pension Fund of Commerce, and Gildi Pension Fund, became shareholders in the most recent round.
Laxey Board Chairman Lárus Ásgeirsson said that the successful financing was a “confirmation of the confidence investors have in the company and our vision for the future.”
“It enables us to accelerate development, strengthen revenue streams, and deepen cooperation in the sector on a foundation that is stable, responsible, sustainable for communities and the environment, and realistic over the long term,” he said.
Formerly known as Icelandic Land Farmed Salmon, the company initially planned a 10,000-metric-ton (MT) salmon farm. After multiple successful funding rounds, which have raised millions, the company expanded its ambitions to 32,000 MT yearly.
Before closing on a USD 47 million (EUR 40.1 million) private placement in April 2024, the company was largely funded by the family of Sigurjón Óskarsson, who formerly owned the fishing company Os.
Following the most recent equity increase, the Óskarsson family remains Laxey’s biggest shareholder, with a 38 percent stake in the company. International investors hold about 21 percent of the company, while Icelandic pension funds hold about 20 percent.
The influx of capital will be used to support the financing of a large smolt facility in Viðlagafjara, which will be equipped with eight 1,100-cubic-meter tanks in a covered building, ensuring maximum biosecurity.
In the same release in which it shared the funding news, Laxey said that its smolt station is now fully operational.
The first batch of fertilized eggs arrived to the hatchery in November 2023 and were transferred to the grow-out stage in November 2024. That group has now reached an average weight of 2 kilograms and will be harvested in November 2025, when the fish have reached 4 to 5 kilograms.
The company’s new processing plant is also under construction and due to open in fall 2025. Once it is operational, Laxey said, it will control “the entire process – from egg to harvest.”
