Nelson-based SeaDragon hopes to complete a new factory by June.
SeaDragon, which manufactures fish oil for health supplements, boosted first-half sales 17 per cent after securing supply of raw material to help bolster production, and has building consents for its new refining plant worth $7.5 million.
Revenue rose to $2.45 million in the six months ended September 30 from $2.08
million a year earlier, the Nelson-based company said.
Sales in September comprised the majority, bringing in $1.06 million, a record monthly income for the company. Earlier this year, the company secured supply of new raw material for its squalene production.
SeaDragon now has consents to build its new refined fish oil factory, splitting the cost with its landlord and hopes to complete it by June next year as it looks to diversify away from squalene production into higher-value Omega-3 fish oils.
The plant will be able to process more than 5000 tonnes of the oils from hoki, tuna and salmon, enabling it to grow its share of the US$30 billion market for fortified foods and drinks. It expects the new factory to help earnings from the second half of the 2016 financial year.
