Mowi offloads its stake in DESS Aquaculture

MOWI has sold its 50 per cent stake in the aquaculture vessel support company DESS Aquaculture Shipping for around €115m (NOK 1.2bn).

The sale will provide the global salmon giant with a useful boost to its cash reserves during a difficult time for the fish farming sector.

The buyer is Antin Infrastructure Partners, a leading private equity firm focused on infrastructure investments. It has bases in London, Paris and NewYork.

Based in Grimstad, Norway Dess (Deep Sea Supply) operates a modern fleet of live fish carriers, well boats and other support vessels.

An announcement said that Mowi had invested €60m in DESS and , with its share of the proceeds at €115m it would give the company a gain of approximately €55m.

It added:“The company’s primary interest is fish farming, primarily salmon, the operations of which are focused on Norway, Scotland, Canada, the Faroe Islands, Ireland and Chile.

“The group has a share of 25 to 30 per cent of the global salmon and trout market, making it the world’s largest company in the sector.”

Founded just four years ago as a joint venture between Deep Sea Supply and Mowi, the company has developed vessels and its operation based on a combination of DESS’s experience as an Offshore Supply Vessel (OSV) owner and MOWI’s seafood production expertise.

They said at the time that the aim was to build DESS into one of the world’s largest aquaculture shipping companies, offering vessels of high welfare standards and innovative design.

DESS is currently building two new wellboats for Mowi.