Mowi’s acquisition of a majority share in seafood peer Nova Sea has been put under scrutiny by the European Commission.
The Norwegian seafood giant announced in January it would increase its stake in Nova Sea by snapping up an additional 46% in the salmon processor held by investor Vigner Olaisen. That would give Mowi a 95% controlling share.
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Now, the EU public authority said in a statement yesterday (22 September) it is inviting comments from interested parties on the transaction after receiving notification of the deal on 12 September.
The EC organisation is inviting comments for ten days from the date of its statement.
On preliminary examination, the EC said it finds that the transaction “could fall within the scope of the Merger Regulation” but added “the final decision on this point is reserved”.
Just Food has contacted Mowi for comment.
The deal would see Mowi taking Vigner Olaisen’s stake in Nova Sea for Nkr7.4bn ($748m currently).
The seafood group has held a minority stake in Nova Sea since 1995. The business said 30% of the payment for the additional interest will be made in terms of Mowi shares, while 70% will be in cash.
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By GlobalDataThe deal is said to value Nova Sea at Nkr16bn.
The EC explained that the business activities of Mowi cover the full value chain for Norwegian Farmed Atlantic Salmon (NFAS), through “feed, farming and global sales and processing”, while Nova Sea is only active in the farming and primary processing part of the supply chain.
Mowi will also extend a voluntary cash offer of Nkr800m to shareholders owning the remaining 5% of Nova Sea.
Mowi CEO Ivan Vindheim said in January: “Nova Sea is a frontrunner in the Norwegian aquaculture industry and is known for its excellent biological performance and industry-leading margins.
“Over 50 years, the company and the Olaisen family have invested in the organisation and developed it into an impressive, fully integrated operation. It is therefore with great pleasure that we are now, after 30 years, combining our operations.”
In conjunction with the stake acquisition, Nova Sea board chairman Aino Olaisen will be proposed as a new board member at Mowi.
Nova Sea anticipates harvesting 52,000 tonnes of salmon in 2025.
With the increased ownership, Mowi and Nova Sea together are expected to harvest 157,000 tonnes of salmon in northern Norway in 2025, contributing to a total harvest volume of 367,000 tonnes in Norway and 572,000 tonnes globally.
Mowi said it expects the integration to generate synergies of approximately Nkr400m annually, driven by improved capacity utilisation and targeted investments to enhance fish health.
