Aker Seafoods on Tuesday posted third-quarter operating revenue of NOK 609 million (USD 108 million, EUR 73 million), up from NOK 586 million in the same period last year.
The Norwegian company also recorded third-quarter earnings of NOK 36 million (USD 6.4 million, EUR 4.3 million), up from a loss of NOK 13 million in the same period in 2008. This year’s third quarter was the company’s best ever third quarter, in terms of EBITDA.
“This signals a positive trend after a difficult period for the whitefish industry,” said Aker CEO Yngve Myhre.
Aker’s whitefish landings increased 20 percent in the third quarter, but prices fell so sales grew only 4 percent. For example, consumption of fresh cod in France, Europe’s largest cod market, was up 52 percent through mid-August, but retail prices dropped 11 percent.
In addition, fuel prices were significantly lower in this year’s first nine months, which helped the company’s bottom line.
“Harvesting volumes increased, but we have more than 30 percent of the company’s cod quota left for the fourth quarter, which provides us with a very good basis for operations for the remainder of the year. However, the foreign exchange market provides a factor of uncertainty, and a strong NOK will be negative for a Norwegian export-orientated seafood business,” said Myhre.
“Reduced inventory and better product mix, with a higher share of fresh products, contributed to a rise in sales compared with last year,” added Myhre. “We focus on fresh production and have completed an upgrade of our processing plant in Stamsund. This improves efficiency and further increases the quality of the production.”
