NTS secures 70 percent stake in Norway Royal Salmon, SalMar pulls the plug on offer

Namsos, Norway-based aquaculture group NTS ASA has become the owner of more than 70 percent of the shares in Norway Royal Salmon ASA (NRS), having received enough acceptances of its revised mandatory offer of NOK 240 (USD 27.20, EUR 23.12) per share, ahead of the expiration of its offer period on 26 August, 2021.

NTS received acceptances for a total of 14,409,528 shares at the time of expiry, corresponding to 33.1 percent of the total number of shares and votes in NRS. It also acquired some 200,000 NRS shares on the market on 26 August, 2021. Among the shareholdings secured on the offer’s last day were the large blocks owned by Egil Kristoffersen & Sonner and Norway Fresh, which totaled 20.8 percent of the outstanding shares in NRS.

Frøya, Norway-headquartered SalMar ASA has subsequently advised the Oslo Stock Exchange that its voluntary cash offer to acquire all outstanding shares in NRS will not be launched. The offer that SalMar made on 20 August of NOK 270 (USD 30.60, EUR 26.01) per share was conditional upon the salmon-farming company receiving acceptances for enough shares to give it more than 50 percent ownership of NRS.

“As this condition will not be satisfied, SalMar will not launch the offer,” SalMar said in a statement. “SalMar regrets that the offer, which was at a significant premium to NTS' mandatory offer and in SalMar's opinion represented a fair valuation of NRS, will not be made to the shareholders of NRS, and also that the synergies that could be achieved through a combination of NRS and SalMar will not be realized.”

NRS currently has 36,085 metric tons (MT) of maximum allowed biomass (MAB) for salmon farming in Troms and Finnmark in Norway, and 17,800 MT MAB for salmon farming and 5,300 MT MAB for trout farming in Iceland through Arctic Fish. It also holds a minority interest in two associated Norwegian fish farming companies, which together own nine fish-farming licenses.

NTS already held 16,133,662 shares in NRS, and will following completion of the offer hold in total 30,743,190 shares, corresponding to 70.6 percent of the total number of shares and votes in NRS.

NTS has advised the Oslo Stock Exchange that shareholders who have accepted its offer will receive settlement in Norwegian krone as soon as reasonable possible and no later than two weeks after the expiry of the offer period of 9 September, 2021. NTS said the number of acceptances received in the offer may change based on final counting.

Photo courtesy of NTS