Utror, a new company set up by Norwegian salmon producer Lovundlaks, has appointed Olav-Andreas Ervik as its new CEO, a press release announced.
The 46-year-old left his role as SalMar CEO back in 2019, being replaced by Gustav Witzoe after only 1.5 years in the role. He moved to SalMar Ocean, where he was primarily responsible for the company’s investment in offshore farming. Across his over 25 years in the industry, Ervik has worked in management rolls at Leroy Hydrotech, Leroy Midnor, SalMar and Scottish Seafarms.
“There is something historic about this employment, because about 50 years ago Steinar and Hans-Petter wrote the following: The external conditions should dictate that it is possible to run food fish production at Helgeland. Although so far no attempts have been made with farming in floating ponds here, the results from Hitra and Frøya are promising,” the company stated.
“For those who know the industry and Olav-Andreas, they know that, among other things, he has led Frøya based Salmar’s pioneering investment in aquaculture at sea. Now, 50 years after Steinar and Hans-Petter were inspired by others to break down barriers, Frøya’s results are looking promising again. We are therefore very happy that we have managed to link Olav-Andreas’ unique expertise to Utror, and we look forward to accelerating together the investment in aquaculture at sea in Helgeland,” the company added.
“Lovundlaks is a company steeped in tradition with a very strong and sharp operational focus, which has produced – and continues to produce – good results. This focus is very important for success also at sea, and is something I also place high on my agenda when new ways of operating are to be developed,” Ervik told RanaBlad.
“I find that we have very similar goals, values - and not least ambitions for the aquaculture industry. With this as a starting point, I am very much looking forward to embarking on new and exciting tasks during the autumn, and to developing an HTH venture starting in Nordland together with the rest of the team in Utror,” Ervik added
With Ervik’s appointment, Utror’s current CEO, Mathias Iversen will become financial director, while Lars Konrad Johnsen will become acting chairman. Ervik will begin his new role on October 3rd.
