BioMar, a wholly owned subsidiary of Schouw & Co., has agreed to divest its
50.71% ownership interest in the Norwegian fish farming business Sjøtroll
Havbruk. The buyer is Norway-based Lerøy Seafood Group, one of Norway's leading
salmon farming businesses. The agreement is subject to ordinary terms and
conditions, including to authority approval.
The selling price of the shares in Sjøtroll is NOK 540 million, equal to an
enterprise value of NOK 1,298 million on a 100% basis at August 31, 2010. The
selling price consists of NOK 408.5 million in cash and 1 million shares in
Lerøy, which in the agreement have been valued at NOK 131.5 per share.
Ownership of the shares in Lerøy, which are not subject to any restrictions,
will be reviewed on a regular basis, but Schouw & Co. sees promising
perspectives both for Lerøy and for the fish farming industry in general.
Since taking an ownership interest in Sjøtroll in 2004 as part of a refinancing
solution, BioMar has invested a total of NOK 313 million and received total
dividends of NOK 65 million. Given the current selling price, this equals a
return on the investment of 16.5% p.a.
For accounting purposes, Schouw & Co. has treated Sjøtroll as discontinuing
operations, recognising the financial results in the income statement under
'profit/loss from discontinuing operations', which is measured after tax.
Accordingly, the sale of Sjøtroll has no accounting effect on EBIT.
Schouw & Co.'s Q3 2010 interim report is scheduled for November 4. Further
financial details regarding the transaction will be announced in connection
with the closing of the transaction, which is expected to take place within the
next six weeks.
Aktieselskabet Schouw & Co.
Jørn Ankær Thomsen Jens Bjerg Sørensen
Chairman President
Questions relating to the above should be directed to Jens Bjerg Sørensen,
President, on tel. +45 8611 2222. Reference is also made to the announcement
issued by Lerøy, which is available from www.leroy.no.
Facts about Lerøy Seafood Group
Lerøy is one of the world's largest producers of salmon/trout. Annual
production is 116,000 tons. Lerøy's core activities are distribution, sale and
marketing of seafood, processing of seafood, production of salmon, trout and
other species. Lerøy generated 2009 revenue of NOK 7.5 billion, EBIT of
approximately NOK 1 billion and employed some 1,500 people. Lerøy is listed on
the Oslo Bors (Oslo Stock Exchange) and has a market capitalisation of
approximately NOK 7.0 billion.
