August 30, 2005

Pan Fish ASA makes NOK64 million acquisition

Norwegian aquaculture giant Pan Fish ASA announced it had acquired Scottish fish farming company Murray Seafood at a total of NOK 64 million, including debt. The acquisition was done through the company's fully owned subsidiary, Pan Fish Scotland.

For this year's first half, Murray Seafood had reportedly harvested about 1,250 tonnes of fish, and registered an operating profit of NOK 4 million.

Murray Seafood was expected to boost Pan Fish's annual output by at least 2,500 tonnes round weight. Before the acquisition, Pan Fish sought to produce 27,800 tonnes of fish a year in Scotland by 2007-08.

Pan Fish Scotland would also gain full control over a fjord area in which the company already had a significant presence. This was expected to achieve greater organisational synergy.