Norcod granted permission to expand its cod farming to additional site

Norcod has been granted additional permissions by the government to establish new production facilities in the Nesna municipality, located in the Nordland county in Norway.

The new permissions, the company announced in a stock filing, gives the company an additional total maximum allowed biomass of 3,599 metric tons (MT). The new location, dubbed Bjørnvika, joins its existing facility in Nesna and forms a “production cluster” totaling 7,200 MT of allowable biomass.

“Norcod has been very well-received by Nesna municipality, which we highly appreciate, and we look forward to continuing our excellent cooperation,” Norcod CEO Christian Riber said a release. “We will keep on working together successfully in the future. We consider this second site in Nesna also to be perfectly suited for cod farming with good water depth, water temperature and currents. I am confident our fish will thrive here.”

The additional permissions brings Norcod to 24 total licenses across Norway, which encompasses six different production sites. All told, the company is now allowed to farm up to 17,500 MT of cod each year.

“Nesna municipality is very happy that Norcod has received approval for a new location for cod farming in Nesna,” Nesna Mayor Hanne Davidsen said. “Norcod is well established in the municipality and contributes to activity and jobs, which are very important to us as a district municipality in transition.”

Norcod said the new site will be equipped with state-of-the-art aquaculture technology.

“Setting up a new location is always an exciting process especially given our motivation to provide a healthy source of protein to an eager market,” Riber said. “We have a highly skilled production team with many years of combined experience so I anticipate this will be a smooth and efficient process.”

Norcod’s announcement comes after it revealed it posted higher losses in Q2 2023 due to a round of accelerated harvests, partially driven by forced harvesting imposed upon the company by the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries in March 2023, after it discovered sexually mature cod at Norcod's Frosvika, Norway-based facility.  

Photo courtesy of Norcod