Furthering the consolidation within the Chilean salmon sector, Norway-based fish farming company, Marine Harvest has announced its second deal within the industry in four months. The deal which will hopefully improve conditions in the industry which has been plagued by pest problems and low production, will see Marine Harvest acquire a 43% stake in Chile’s leading producer, Aqua Chile, and a merging of Marine Harvest’s own business into the venture. The resulting company will have a production capacity of 260,000 tons of salmon and 25,000 tons of tilapia per year. The deal also gives Marine Harvest the option of increasing its stake in the venture to 55% between June 2016 and June 2017. This deal follows closely upon the $120 million acquisition of the assets of Acuinova Chile in September 2014 which added 40,000 tons of production capacity to Marine Harvest’s operations.
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