Increased costs: Gigante is borrowing an extra NOK 50 million

Gigante Salmon AS has published its report for the first quarter of 2025 on Tuesday. 

There it writes that the fish in the facility have had good development throughout the quarter, and standing biomass at the end of the period is 1,070 tonnes. 

The development of the facility is now in its final phase, with two of three production basins completed, and the facility is on track for the planned ramp-up to full capacity of 16,000 tonnes (head on gutted) annually from 2028.

After the end of the period, in early May, the harvest of the first generation, stocked in January last year, has begun. The fish are slaughtered at Salten N950, sold by Fram Seafood and Polar Quality.

From the first trial production, Gigante Salmon expects a total harvest of around 550 tonnes HOG.

Q1 highlights

From the first quarter, the company reports the following main points:

• Standing biomass at the end of the period is 1,070 tonnes
• Achieved certification according to the GlobalGAP standard
• Production pool B has been completed and testing has begun.
• In production pool C, all walls are fully cast, and casting of partition walls is in the final phase.
• All marine and diving work has been completed.

The company reported in its report for the fourth quarter of 2024 that progress on the project had been affected by bad weather. 

"Delays normally result in increased costs, and the company is continuously assessing cost developments," it says in its Q1 2025 report. 

It is still expected that the cost burden will be reduced in the final phase of the development, but to manage the liquidity risk in the final phase of the project, a shareholder loan of up to NOK 50m (£3.6m) will be established with the main shareholder Gigante Havbruk AS. The loan is entered into on similar terms as the company's other financing.

The company writes in the Q1 report that it plans to  stock 2.2 million smolts in the third quarter.