Håkon André Berg, CEO of landbased fish farmer Salmon Evolution, has resigned from his position.
The board of directors has acknowledged Berg’s decision and appointed CFO Trond Håkon Schaug-Pettersen as interim CEO with immediate effect.
Håkon André Berg will be available for the company during a transition period and the board of directors will promptly start the process of recruiting a permanent replacement.
“It’s been a real pleasure leading Salmon Evolution through this very exciting period of time, where we have gone from being a small start-up to a large company with about 60 employees and a global presence. I firmly believe that the company is in a unique position and it has not been an easy decision to make. However, due to certain personal family matters, I have come to the conclusion that stepping down from my position as CEO is the best solution for both my family and the company,” Håkon André Berg says.
The company’s nomination committee has been informed about the decision and after careful considerations, the nomination committee has proposed that Håkon André Berg is elected as board member in Salmon Evolution which he has accepted. Accordingly, the company will shortly call for an extra ordinary general meeting to facilitate this.
“The board of directors regrets that Håkon André Berg has asked for relief from his position as CEO. After joining the company in 2019, he has been instrumental in establishing Salmon Evolution as the global frontrunner within land-based salmon farming. We do however appreciate that Håkon has accepted to join the company’s board of directors subject to the general meeting’s decision. At the same time the board of directors is pleased to have secured continuity with the appointing of Trond Håkon Schaug-Pettersen as interim CEO, whom together with the rest of the management team and the entire organization, ensures that the company is very well equipped to deliver on both our strategy as well as our upcoming milestones”, said Tore Tønseth, chairman of Salmon Evolution.
Schaug-Pettersen was appointed the CFO of Salmon Evolution in October 2020, has been an important part of Salmon Evolution’s leadership team and brought extensive experience from both the salmon industry and the capital market. Prior to joining Salmon Evolution, he served over four years as Senior Vice President Finance and Business Development at salmon farmer and processor Hofseth International and, prior to that, nine years as an investment banker at Swedbank/First Securities.
“Salmon Evolution is an amazing company with highly skilled employees and a unique company culture. We have some very exciting months ahead with our first harvest coming up shortly and where we will finally have our proof of concept demonstrated. On that basis Salmon Evolution will have an unparalleled platform to expand our operations, both in Norway and abroad”, saysTrond Håkon Schaug -Pettersen, the new interim CEO and CFO of Salmon Evolution.
The company’s production ramp-up is proceeding according to plan and the company expects to start harvesting of batch 1 in early November.
