Salmon Evolution Posts NOK 20.2 Million EBITDA Loss and Cuts 2026 Harvest Guidance

Key Facts

Salmon Evolution reported group EBITDA of negative NOK 20.2 million in the third quarter of 2026 and announced on October 28 a credit facility of up to NOK 200 million from DNB. The company said the additional financing follows salmon prices falling below expectations. Farming operations alone recorded EBITDA of negative NOK 13.3 million during the quarter. Meanwhile, harvest volume was 1,597 tonnes HOG, with an all-in realised price of about NOK 64 per kilogram and a superior-quality share of 94%. The report combines pricing pressure and a loss in farming operations with continued production and high harvest quality.

The company said net biomass growth was 1,984 tonnes live weight in the third quarter. Growth in Phase 1 was affected by an underperforming fish group, which the company said it fully harvested during the quarter. By contrast, Phase 2 continued to grow in line with plan. This divergence shows that the operational factor cited by the company was linked to the performance of a specific group in Phase 1, while planned expansion in Phase 2 continued. In its operational update issued on October 8, the company had reported a harvest of 1,596 tonnes HOG and a realised price of about NOK 65 per kilogram, with superior quality at 94%.

Compared with the third quarter of 2025, harvest volume rose to 1,597 tonnes HOG from 1,387 tonnes, while the realised price at the time was about NOK 61 per kilogram. Net biomass growth in that quarter was about 1,800 tonnes live weight, compared with 1,984 tonnes in the current quarter. Last year, the CEO said in an update that salmon prices had recovered during September, while Norwegian biomass growth declined year on year, supporting expectations of a tighter balance between supply and demand in 2026. The company’s current announcement links its need for additional financing to prices falling below expectations, despite higher harvest volume and quality compared with the corresponding period. The company’s results do not detail how much prices contributed to the EBITDA loss.

The new facility with DNB has a maximum size of NOK 200 million and matures on June 30, 2027. The company set the interest margin at NIBOR plus 500 basis points, with a quarterly increase of 50 basis points. It said the facility had been completed and was intended to provide additional financing following salmon prices falling below expectations. The financing therefore extends beyond the end of this year, but carries a margin that rises every three months under the announced terms. The company did not specify in the published information how much it would actually draw from the available facility.

Salmon Evolution cut its 2026 harvest guidance to about 5,500 tonnes HOG. It attributed the update mainly to moving the first Phase 2 harvest, making use of flexibility in its production plan. By contrast, the company expects to harvest 11,000 to 12,000 tonnes HOG in 2027 and targets farming EBITDA cost at run rate of NOK 60 to 65 per kilogram by mid-year. The announced trajectory points to a substantial increase in targeted harvest after the current-year forecast was reduced, while linking lower costs to higher production. Management set its near-term priorities as delivering production targets for Phases 1 and 2 and turning increased output into lower unit costs.

The company expects construction of Phase 2 to be completed by the end of 2026, with formal handover of the final two tanks after testing and commissioning in the first quarter of 2027. The plan announced in the second quarter included the release of 2.8 million smolt across Phases 1 and 2 during 2026, up 65% from 2025. Completion of construction and handover of the two tanks are among the operational steps preceding the production targets set by the company for the two phases. The next milestones set by management are construction completion by year-end, followed by formal handover in the first quarter of 2027, and then the harvest and cost targets announced for that year.