Icelandic fishing gear group Hampiðjan has concluded an agreement to acquire Norwegian supplier Mørenot, subject to the approval of competition authorities in Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands.
‘Mørenot is a company that we have long seen as a suitable addition to the Hampiðjan group, as both geographical distribution and product offering fit well together and the companies have significant potential to support each other in a variety of areas,’ said Hampiðjan CEO Hjörtur Erlendsson.
‘There is a great potential for achieving synergy through optimisation and integration as well as increasing product sales in areas where the companies, respectively, have not had good access to markets. This potential exists in all aspects of operations, including fishing gear, fish farming products and services for fish farming or high-tech rope solutions for the offshore industry. We are happy to welcome the current owners of Mørenot to our shareholder group and to have the opportunity to further strengthen the shareholder base when we move the company from First North to the Main Market of Nasdaq Iceland.’
The two companies are similar in some respects, but have differing product ranges. Mørenot has its own production of quality longlines and hooks in China, where its facility in Dalian also produces ropes and larger traps for crab fisheries.
More than half of Mørenot’s turnover is related to fish farming in Norway, the Shetland Islands, Scotland and Spain, and about 15% of Hampiðjan’s sales are also related to fish farming in these same areas, as well as in Ireland and Iceland. Both companies produce their own nets for fish farm cages and operate large net workshops in Lithuania where the cages are manufactured.
Increasing the geographic spread is expected to allow the companies to cross-sell products in their respective market areas. Hampiðjan has operations in 15 countries around the world and Mørenot has operations in eight, including three areas where Hampiðjan does not have its own operations.
‘Over recent years we have seen clear trends for a growing need for economies of scale, sustainability, and digitalisation in our industry,’ said Mørenot chairman Espen Asheim.
‘Mørenot has therefore been focusing on improving our operational efficiency and building structure capital in parallel with participating in various market consolidation discussion. The combination of the two companies is a really strong one, and we could not have found a better match. We look forward to being a part of this great joint unit.’
