Indoor fish farm in Delaware County to be sold
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AquaBounty Technologies Inc. is planning to sell its indoor fish farm operation in the Delaware County town of Albany.
The Maynard, Massachusetts-based aquaculture company said the move is part of an effort to improve its financial position and prioritize construction of a new facility in Ohio.
AquaBounty took over operation of the Albany facility after it acquired Bell Fish Co. in 2017 for $14 million. The company received approval in 2018 from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to begin raising salmon at the facility, and production began the following year.
The company uses the facility to produce its genetically engineered AquAdvantage Salmon, which it says reach harvest weight faster and more efficiently than conventional salmon grown in sea cages and are free of antibiotics and ocean contaminants.
In its third quarter 2023 earnings report released last November, the AquaBounty CEO Sylvia Wulf said while the Indiana farm exceeded its output expectations, the company’s results were impacted by a decline in market prices for Atlantic salmon that began the previous quarter.
Wulf said in a news release on Wednesday that the decision to sell the Indiana facility was a difficult one to make.
“We have built a strong operation there with a passionate and experienced team, and I want to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to our team members in Indiana for the job they have done over the last eight years to transform the facility and create a well-run operation,” Wulf said. “Our focus will be on harvesting the remaining GE Atlantic salmon for sale over the coming months to ready the farm for a new owner.”
A spokesperson for AquaBounty declined to give details on how much the facility is expected to be sold for, but the company said in the release that the proceeds “are expected to provide needed liquidity to AquaBounty’s balance sheet.”
It was also unclear how many people are currently employed at the facility and if any jobs would be negatively affected by the sale.
The company said it had been exploring financing alternatives “to strengthen its balance sheet and increase its cash position,” especially as it continues construction on its $485 million facility in Ohio.
Construction is about 30% complete, and AquaBounty said it plans to prioritize the financing alternatives necessary to complete the project.