Construction of phase 2 has been paused while the company works to both improve profitability and raise more money.
Photo: Atlantic Sapphire
Still uncertainty about continued operations at Atlantic Sapphire
The Florida land-based salmon farmer increased its harvest volume and reduced costs significantly in the first half of the year. At the same time, equity has become negative since the new year, debt has increased sharply and there is still significant uncertainty regarding its continued operations.
Atlantic Sapphire harvested 2,842 tonnes of salmon in the first half of 2026, which is 14% more than in the same period last year. Revenue also increased from US $21.5 million to $26.5m.Operating profit before depreciation and amortization, EBITDA, was minus $16.4 million, compared to minus $26.8 million in the first half of 2025. Net profit ended at minus $30.9 million, an improvement from a loss of $36.1 million the previous year.
Bigger fish with lower costs
The company reports that the average harvest weight increased from 2.9 to 3.2 kilograms with a superior share of around 90%.
Daily feeding increased from 24.1 to 27.3 tonnes. At the end of June, the company had a standing biomass of 3,592 tonnes, 11% more than a year earlier.
Atlantic Sapphire expects both biomass growth and harvest volume to increase further in the second half of the year, compared to both the first half of 2026 and the same period last year.
The company's reported EBITDA cost simultaneously fell from $21.02 to $16.65 per kilogram.
However, it is still far above the average selling price of $9.32 per kilogram.
0.9% mortality rate
The company reports a mortality rate in the growth phase of 0.9% in the first half of the year, compared to 0.4% in the same period last year.
It writes in its H1 2026 report that costs related to underutilised production capacity fell from $6.9m in the first half of 2025 to $4.2m in the first six months of this year. The company points to increased capacity for CO2 degassing and biofiltration as well as a new system for cooling water as reasons for the operational progress. The further development of phase 2 at the Florida facility is still on hold, it is stated.
Negative equity
Despite the progress in operations, the financial situation remains very demanding for the company.
At the end of June, the group's equity was minus $20 million, compared to plus $11.9m at the end of the year. The equity ratio thus fell from 8.8% to minus 14.8%.
At the same time, net interest-bearing debt rose from $91.5m at the end of the year to $118.2m at the end of June.
Financing costs have also increased sharply. Net financial costs were $7.4m, compared to $2.0m the previous year. The company explains the increase, among other things, as being due to larger convertible loans and bridge loans, in addition to a $1.5m establishment fee related to the bridge loan.
Needs more capital
In the notes, Atlantic Sapphire writes that it needs additional financing to be able to maintain operations and meet its obligations over the next 12 months.
"Although the board believes there is reasonable reason to expect that sufficient financing can be secured, the successful implementation of these measures is not fully within the group's control," it writes.
Atlantic Sapphire is therefore planning a private placement of up to $26 million. Of this, $20m is guaranteed by the investor group behind Coral HoldCo.
The investor group is simultaneously working to take full control of the company and have Atlantic Sapphire delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange.
