Pescanova, Europe's third-largest seafood company, has filed for insolvency after having failed to sell part of its salmon farming operation in Chile.
The company, based in the northwestern Spanish city of Pontevedra, now has up to four months to renegotiate its debt with creditors under Spanish law. Trading in its stock was suspended after it failed to file an annual report. Pescanova's share price has dropped 26% over the last year. closing at EUR 17.40 ($22.75) Feb. 28.
Pescanova, which had debt worth 1.52 billion euros ($1.99 billion) at the end of September last year, struggled in the last months to make its investments into farmed crustaceans and fish pay off. Its largest shareholder, with 14.5% of the equity, is Manuel Fernandez de Sousa-Faro. He has also been the ceo of the company for more than 30 years.
