European land-based salmon producer Columbi Salmon has sold its shares in Florida-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) salmon group Atlantic Sapphire, according to an update from investor service Holdings.

In December, Intrafish reported that Columbi Salmon had bought 3.33 million shares in Atlantic Sapphire, making it the 10th largest stakeholder in the company.

It is not known what Columbi Salmon paid for its shares, but at the end of December the price was hovering at the NOK 7.50 (€.70/$0.75) mark, pricing the 3.33 million shares at around NOK 25 million (€2.3 million/$2.5million).

According to Holdings, Columbi Salmon sold 874,416 shares last week. It is not clear when the other shares were sold.

Since that time, the price has gone roughly sideways, and as of Monday afternoon the share price was NOK 7.37 (€0.69/$0.74).

"We do not comment on the purchase or sale of shares," CFO Kolbjorn Giskeodegard told Intrafish.

Columbia Salmon is now listed as holding no shares in Atlantic Sapphire.

No individual player has significantly increased their holdings of Atlantic Sapphire shares recently, indicating that the shares have been sold to a number of different buyers.

Columbi Salmon, founded by ex-Nordea executives Anders Hagen, Kolbjorn Giskeodegard and Ivar Refnes, is planning a land-based salmon farm in Oostende, Belgium, with a projected production capacity of 12,000-15,000 metric tons in the first phase.

The group has been partnering with various financial players since its formation and has strong owners in the form of Norwegian giants Refsnes Laks, Ferd and Kverva.

It chose RAS supplier Billund Aquaculture as its technology supplier in 2021 and is currently in discussions with feed producers and genetics providers.