Grieg Seafood has revealed Andreas Kvame will step down as CEO of the Norway-based business after occupying the seat for ten years.
Kvame has agreed with the publicly-listed group’s board to relinquish the CEO role, with Nina Willumsen Grieg stepping in on an interim base while a search for a replacement takes place, according to a statement.
Grieg is currently the regional director for the company’s operations in Norway, known as Grieg Seafood Rogaland.
Kvame will stay on during the transition process until a new CEO is found.
Paal Espen Johnsen, who has taken on the role of Grieg Seafood’s board chair, said of Kvame’s departure: “During his time as CEO, he has set the agenda for and executed the successful post-smolt strategy.
“He has played an instrumental role in developing Grieg Seafood into an international fish-farming company with integrated operations. The strategic direction for the company remains firm.”
In other areas of management, Per Grieg Jr. has stepped down as board chair to be replaced by Johnsen, currently vice chair of the board, until the company’s next general meeting.
Grieg Jr., meanwhile, takes a regular board seat in line with what the company called “good corporate governance” with the departure of Kvame.
Kvame said in the statement: “It has been a true privilege to lead Grieg Seafood for more than ten years, and I want to thank all of my colleagues for their efforts.
“A main priority has been the development of post-smolt production, which I strongly believe will play an important part in the future of the entire salmon farming industry.”
Kvame referenced the “transformation programme” that has been undertaken by Grieg Seafood, which, he said, had “stabilised” the business financially.
The statement added the programme was initiated in February and aims to “transform Grieg Seafood into a focused Norwegian seafood producer, concentrating on core operations in Rogaland and Finnmark”.
It continued: “Grieg Seafood is positioning itself for a return to profitability and long-term sustainable growth in its home market.”
The programme was announced in Grieg Seafood’s fourth-quarter and annual results for fiscal 2024, issued in February.
A loss before tax of Nkr2.61bn ($247.4m) was delivered for the full year, compared to a Nkr844m profit a year earlier.
Grieg Seafood said it incurred “impairment losses” of Nkr1.74bn related to its operations in Canada, where the business “maintained a cautious approach in British Columbia given the persisting political uncertainty and worked to find a good way forward for our operations in Newfoundland”.
Revenue for the year climbed 6.8% to Nkr7.5bn. EBITDA, however, came in at Nkr659m, down from Nkr1.33bn a year earlier.
Kvame commented on the transformation programme and the issues in Canada in the results statement.
“This includes reallocating resources towards our strong Norwegian assets base, while maintaining our position in Canada, efforts to secure financial strength, and sharpening of the operational initiatives we are running,” he said in relation to the new programme.
“We will be focusing our efforts on sustainable and profitable growth in our Norwegian operations, while protecting the value of our Canadian assets.”
