Troubled Norwegian cod farmer Norcod doubled its losses in the first quarter.
The company registered a loss of NOK 88 million (€7.3 million/$7.9 million) for the first quarter, compared to a loss of NOK 44 million (€3.6 million/$3.9 million) in the same period last year.
Revenue, however, reached NOK 125 million (€10.4 million/$11.2 million), representing an increase of 51 percent over the previous year.
This significant revenue increase was primarily attributed to an uptick in the company's harvesting operations.
A point of positivity in the first quarter report was the cash flow generated from operations, which stood at NOK 9 million. This marks a significant turnaround from the NOK 11 million (€920,000/$980,000) loss recorded in the same period last year.
Norcod reported it harvested 3,362 metric tons in the quarter, a considerable rise from the 2,027 metric tons harvested in the first quarter last year.
In January, the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries told the company it must harvest some of its cod earlier than planned after the discovery that the fish was reaching maturity for spawning.
The process resulted in a change in harvest and production plans for the 2021 generation of fish currently at sea, the company said.
The accelerated rate of harvesting will result in lower volume production than expected with a smaller fish size, as well as lower sales prices due to increased sales on the spot market.
The consequence will be a significant drop in earnings and an increase in costs per kilo.
The early harvest will significantly delay Norcod's plans to consistently supply the market, COO Kian Zadegan told IntraFish at the time.
