Big Russian-Norwegian deal undergoing juridical and financial examination

JSC ZAO Russian Sea Group of Companies known as the country's leading importer and processor operating in tandem with Russian Fish Company, on the one side, and Austevoll Seafood ASA, on the other side, have signed a Letter of Intent, according to which the latter multinational company with the headquarters in Norway will purchase up to 20% of the group's joint stock.

As reported earlier, the deal should receive consents both of the sides' corporate managers and necessary state authorities. The sides are expected to draw up specific conditions of the deal, including the exact share of Austevoll in the group's joint stock, in August 2007 after a juridical and financial examination.

The planned deal is strategically aimed at further development of the group's business in Russia. By combining Austevoll's managerial and technological resources, its longstanding experience of successful sales of fish products all over the world and the RS group's strong market position in Russia (thanks to its famous label and wide distribution network) the sides plan to concentrate on fishing and processing of pelagic species, salmon farming and production of consumer goods from finfish and other aquatic species.

Russian Sea Company

In the last few years the Russian Sea Company has been boosting processing while thoroughly modernizing its facilities and even contracting an Icelandic process engineer to produce ISLANDKA herring preserves. Also, the company has just announced another big program to develop big-scale rainbow trout farming and processing in the Russian province of Karelia bordering on Finland. The company has diversified into fish farming at a favourable moment as the Russian government has put spotlight on the industry pledging to compensate two thirds of the CBR rate on the funds borrowed to develop aquaculture.

Austevoll Seafood ASA

Austevoll is a globally integrated pelagic fishery specialist with operations in three of the most important fishery countries - Chile, Norway and Peru. The company's activities lie in fishing fleet, fish meal plants, canning plants, modern packing plants, fish oil refining, salmon farming and sales.

Over the last decade, AUSS has acquired a significant number of companies of a complementary nature to its existing business areas, and has successfully integrated these businesses and created synergies and value added business through co-operation across its business areas. AUSS has since rapidly risen to become one of the top pelagic fishery companies in the world.