In July 2022, PCP provided a six-year senior secured loan facility to Hima Seafood Rjukan AS (“Hima”), a land-based trout farm based in Rjukan, Norway. The funds will be used to partly finance their new aquaculture facilities, producing premium trout through sustainable recycling systems. The transaction was done in conjunction with secured financing from Foresight Group, an infrastructure and private equity investment manager with a long-established focus on ESG and sustainability-led strategies. In addition to outside capital, the founders of Hima have made further significant investments into the facility. Together the parties have committed NOK 2.5bn.
Hima, established in 2015, has secured both land and all regulatory approvals required in order to initiate the first phase of building the aquaculture plant with the latest RAS technology, capable of producing 8,000 tons of trout annually. Partial operations are expected to commence in 2024 with steady-state operations to follow in 2025. With a strong focus on fish welfare, full control over the production chain, and the best recycling system for aquaculture, Hima aims to produce sustainable trout in the premium segment. Key partners include Villa Seafood, an established Norwegian seafood distributor with a global reach, who will be responsible for the processing, sales and distribution of the finished trout products. The modern aquaculture facility will be designed by Eyvi and constructed by Total Betong, both with long experience in designing and building several fish farming facilities in Norway.
Christian Reiner, Managing Director at PCP: “PCP are thrilled to support the development and growth of increased access to sustainable protein sources. The favourable underlying market trends are anticipated to continue to drive growth in the coming years and land-based fish farming will play a vital part in the development of sustainable food sources. This combined with the clear ESG profile of the Company proved to be a good fit for the PCP IV portfolio. To further incentivise the company, the interest margin will be linked and depend on certain pre-determined ESG linked KPI’s. We look forward to work closely and grow our partnership with Hima in the coming years and support their journey towards becoming the leading premium provider of trout globally”.
July, 2022