Mareterram (ASX:MTM) has increased its vertical integration and strongly consolidated its position in the seafood industry with the acquisition of Focus Fisheries.
Consideration for the acquisition has been estimated at about A$1.3 million.
The agreement provides Mareterram with a six-month option to acquire all the share capital in Focus for the net tangible assets of Focus following a net assets sale, plus $150,000.
Alternatively, Mareterram may acquire certain key export and import permits from Focus for $150,000.
The move has coincided with the appointment of major Focus shareholder Brett Hogan as marketing and fisheries development executive manager for Mareterram subsidiary, Mareterram Fisheries.
“It is a real coup for Mareterram to attract a person of Brett’s calibre in the seafood industry in Australia,” Mareterram CEO David Lock said.
“He brings decades of hands-on knowledge of the industry as well as both domestic and export markets. He will be of tremendous benefit to Mareterram’s operations and future expansion plans.”
Focus commercialises wild caught seafood by providing contract marketing and sales
services in export and domestic seafood markets.
It is a major facilitator of contract offshore processing of Australian wild caught seafood.
Acquisition of the group builds on Mareterram’s 2015 acquisition of NorWest Seafoods for $20 million.
Over the past two years Focus has also performed a fully integrated assistant marketing and management role in the operations of Norwest.
Based in Carnarvon, 900 kilometres north of Perth, NorWest Seafoods is licensed to operate in the Shark Bay prawn fishery which is the largest in Western Australia.
Prawns are exported to markets in Asia as well as sold to local buyers. Norwest is the only prawn trawling fleet in WA that can process locally onshore.
Shares in Mareterram jumped 12.3% today on news of the Focus acquisition and were last trading at A$0.32.
This marks an exceptional gain of almost 4,500% since November last year when the stock was valued at only A$0.007.
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