Sino Agro Food will partner with Nortus Aquacultura e Pesca to build a combined aquaculture and aquafeed facility in Angola.
The Guangzhou, China-based agriculture technology and organic food company signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a vertically integrated aquafarming system based off its Megafarm concept in Zhongshan, China.
The contract calls for Sino Agro’s subsidiary, Capital Award, to deliver plans for the construction of the integrated farms, hatcheries, feed mills, as well as employee training in aquaculture processes and assistance in developing its marketing, distribution, and export channels and operations.
“We are delighted to partner with Nortus, Lda., to tailor our technology to the project aims and to the physical conditions of the project locales,” Sino Agro CEO Solomon Lee said in a press release. “For some time, Capital Award has evaluated opportunities to export its expertise. This opportunity presents the best set of commitments to proceed.”
The farms will be built in the municipalities of Porto Amboim and Cela in Kwanza Sul, Angola, and Ambaca in Kwanza Norte, Angola. In the future, the project may be expanded, Nortus Principal Rui Sancho – naming Namibe, Angola, as the most likely landing spot for a future aquafarm.
Plans for the project call for a 60,000-metric-ton annual production capacity for fish and shrimp, and 150,000 metric tons of annual production of aquafeed, fruits, and vegetables. The farm will focus on the growth of tilapia, African catfish, and Malaysian tiger prawns, according to Sino Agro.
“Nortus, Lda appreciates [Sino Agro’s] great experience and know-how in the development of projects to reach the full potential of Angola’s ambitions to improve the food diet of the populations of Angola, other parts of Africa, and to export surplus product,” Sancho said. “Nortus, Lda has extensive knowledge of the aquaculture industry and the mandates of the Angolan regional and national agriculture agencies, as well as existing relations with the proper authorities to guide the project to funding and fruition.
An estimated cost for the project was not given, but Nortus said the MoU will be submitted as part of a request for funding from a regional Angolan state-sponsored aquaculture agency to Angolan authorities, which has a line of credit from China for mutual development projects.
Sino Agro is in the midst of a reshuffling of its aquaculture portfolio. In March 2017, the company announced it would carve out its aquaculture operations and place them under the umbrella of a new company, Tri-way Industries, in which Sino Agro has retained a 36.6 percent share. In a November 2017 note to investors, the company acknowledged it lacked funds to complete its keystone Zhongshan shrimp aquaculture facility.
Due to the "headwinds" it faced in 2017 and thus far in 2018, CEO Solomon Lee implemented a series of cost-cutting measures, including downsizing several of its projects.
"We’ve taken a look in the mirror, and reappraised some of the ways we’ve run the businesses, in order to best manage going forward, and to restore investor confidence," Lee said in the company's Q3 2018 financial update.
He added that investment in the Zhongshan facility remains a top priority, and that its aquaculture investments remain a steady profit leader for the company.
In the report, Lee said Tri-way had commenced a new trading business, but that it will not commit to any capital expenditures "until it successfully obtains sufficient credit or equity financing to carry out future farm development."
In addition to financial challenges, Sino Agro had to endure the recent loss of its chief financial officer, who passed away 1 December.
Photo courtesy of Sino Agro Foods
