Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland-based company LAXEY, which specialises in aquaculture, announced on Friday, July 5, that it has secured a €6M equity private placement.
This funding will be used to begin the construction of the second section of a 4,500-ton HOG land-based salmon production facility.
The investment round attracted strong interest following the closing of a €40M private placement in April 2024.
The round included investments from Farvatn Private Equity and Kontrari, two Norwegian family offices with experience in seafood investments, who joined existing investors and employees in the investment.
“Continued demand from prominent investors reflects the quality and hard work in Laxey. Along with the commencement of construction for Section 2, we believe these investors bring experience and additional competence to our project” says Lárus Ásgeirsson, chairman of the board of LAXEY.
“Now it is up to us to deliver on construction and farming. It is truly exciting to watch the daily progress of the project and with the first grow-out tanks being erected a few weeks ago we are on a good track to deliver the project on time,“ adds Ásgeirsson.
According to the company, its development is on track. The hatchery has been operational since November 2023, with the first two batches doing well, claims the company in the press release.
The facility will be fully commissioned in July with a capacity of 4M 100g smolt per year.
Progress is also on the schedule for the grow-out site, utilising a hybrid-flow-through technology, says the company. The first grow-out tanks were erected in late June, and the facility will be ready for smolt insertion in fall 2024.
LAXEY: Salmon farming company
Founded in 2019, LAXEY (previously Icelandic Land Farmed Salmon) is a hybrid flow-through salmon project located on Vestmannaeyjar, also referred to as the Westman Islands.
The company was established by a group of entrepreneurs, led by a local family with over 75 years of history in the seafood industry.
The company will produce 27 thousand HOG (Head On Gutted) tons of farmed Atlantic Salmon by 2031 with construction in 6 sections, while in comparison the current production of land-based salmon in Iceland is less than two thousand tons.
LAXEY will base its production on 100 per cent renewable energy sources and will recycle biological waste for fertiliser production.
The fish farm will use a hybrid flow-through system where about 65 per cent of the sea is reused, while 35 per cent is fresh sea water, pumped from boreholes in the area, at optimal water temperatures for salmon farming.
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