SalMar-owned Icelandic salmon group Arnarlax reported a solid increase in both revenue and earnings for the fourth quarter of 2022, as well as for the full year, partly owing to larger harvest volumes and strong prices.

During the fourth quarter, the group reported revenue of €51.7 million ($55 million) and an operating earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of €9.3 million ($9.5 million), compared with €35.8 million ($37 million) and €3.65 million ($4 million) respectively during the same period the year prior.

The company reported an €157.6 million ($168 million) operating income for the full 2022, compared with €90.8 million ($95 million) in 2021, a 74 percent increase.

The group’s operational EBIT for 2022 amounted to €36.1 million ($38 million) compared with €7.3 million ($8 million) in 2021.

Call for ban on netpen salmon farming in Iceland could stymie sector's expansion in the country
 Read more

Operational EBIT per kilo in 2022 amounted to €2.24 ($2.38) compared with €0.63 ($0.67) in 2021.

The full year and the fourth quarter of 2022 represent periods of record growth in both harvest volume and revenue, the company said in its fourth quarter update.

Icelandic Salmon, of which Norwegian salmon giant SalMar owns 51 percent, is the parent company of Arnarlax. All operational activities of the group are performed in Arnarlax.

Iceland will never be the biggest salmon farmer. Can it be the best?
 Read more

Icelandic Salmon harvested 6,008 metric tons in the fourth quarter, which was its highest harvesting volume in a quarter to date. The harvest volume for the full year amounted to 16,138 metric tons, which was an increase by 40 percent compared to 2021.

The group expects to harvest 16,000 metric tons of salmon in 2023, and expects a significant volume growth in 2024.

Due to the company's low share of fixed-price contracts, it achieved good market prices with high spot prices, which was also partly due to larger-sized fish being harvested in the fourth quarter.

The last year was the group’s first full year offering its pre-rigor fillets, and demand has increased throughout the year for the fish, it said. Europe remains the group’s main market, but the US and Canadian markets are expected to continue to grow for the company in the coming years.

The company is currently establishing more sites, one site has been issued in Patreksfjordur. An application for a farming license in Isafjardardjup is still in process, and an application for increased biomass in Arnarfjordur of 4,500 metric tons is delayed.

Under the current risk assessment issued by Icelandic Marine Research Institute, 106,500 metric tons maximum allowable biomass of salmon is allowed and licenses have so far been issued for 86,800 metric tons. The assessment is re-evaluated every three years, and next evaluation for the country will take place later this year. 

Production in Iceland for 2022 was around 45,000 metric ton.

Read more