Nortuna, a Norwegian company that originally aimed to farm Atlantic bluefin tuna, has raised NOK 13.5 million (USD 1.2 million, EUR 1.1 million) in a funding round as the company shifts to farming Seriola rivoliana, or longfin yellowtail.
Nortuna had originally been working to establish Atlantic bluefin tuna farming off the coast of Cape Verde and started research on the process in 2011. Since then, the company began shifting its target species to seriola, and it first began to focus on breeding the species in the summer of 2023.
The company said the species presents an exciting opportunity for the company because it grows more than twice as fast as salmon and fetches a higher market price. Demand for the species is also increasing in Europe, the U.S., and Southeast Asia.
“A significant market potential for Seriola rivoliana is expected in the coming years as the markets develop in collaboration with distribution partners and other players,” Nortuna said.
In a May release, the company gave an update to its shareholders that said its strategy for 2024 is to use its available hatchery capacity to develop production of seriola fry, with a goal of producing 200,000 fry before the end of the year.
In February, Nortuna said it is planning a market introduction for its seriola, as it works to gain revenue from production and become cash-flow positive.
"We are in concrete talks with a selected, recognized distributor with worldwide distribution channels. This distributor has already identified a small handful of leading restaurants with whom they want to enter into a dialogue to test the fish,” Nortuna CEO Jan Magne Gilje said. "The strategy is to get the suppliers to test small quantities of fish from relatively small sizes up to fish of around 10 kilograms. Through this, we will learn how the quality develops during the growth phase."
In addition to farming and selling seriola, Nortuna has also recently raised funds via a successful funding round. According to Nortuna CFO Josef Flatebø Schlezinger, the company’s capital requirements until the end of 2024 are roughly NOK 20 million (USD 1.8 million, EUR 1.7 million).
To reach NOK 20 million, the company planned two separate funding rounds. Schlezinger said Phase 1 of the funding round was expected to raise between NOK 5 million and NOK 10 million (USD 455,000 and USD 909,000, EUR 420,000 and EUR 840,000) but managed to raise NOK 13.5 million (USD 1.2 million, EUR 1.1 million) from both existing and new shareholders.
Phase 2, he said, aims to raise ...
