Trident Seafoods Nearing Sales of Alaska Shoreside Plants

Trident Seafoods officials said March 8 that they’re in the final stages of closing deals on the sales of Alaska shoreside plants in Petersburg, Ketchikan and False Pass, with multiple parties interested in a fourth plant.

Trident announced in December that it was seeking buyers for all four plants as part of a strategic restructuring initiative.

Trident CEO Joe Bundrant said that his company has been intentional about finding buyers “who will take great care of the fleet and employees and who will integrate themselves into the communities.”

As of March 13, the potential buyers for the plants have not been publicly identified.

Trident Senior Vice President of Alaska Operations Jeff Welbourn acknowledged that it has been an unsettling time, but said Trident is moving as quickly as possible to minimize the impact of this transition on the fleet, its employees and the communities involved.

Welbourn also said that finalizing sales of those three plants are relatively simple, straightforward transactions.

“We are keenly aware of the upcoming salmon season, and we are confident that the buyers, with Trident’s support will be able to communicate with the fleet, employees and tenders in the coming weeks,” he said.

The company is also in discussion with multiple interested buyers for its plant in Kodiak, which operates year-round in support of multiple species.

“Even if we don’t close a deal by this summer, Trident will still provide a market for salmon season in Kodiak,” he said. “This means that our employees and fleet are secure, and we will share a tender strategy soon.”

Bundrant stated that Trident is committed to Alaska fisheries for the long term, and said finding the best solutions for these plants was important to his company.

“Consolidating our operations allows us to focus reinvestments and ensure we’re able to positively contribute to the Alaska seafood sector for many years to come,” he said.

Trident Seafoods is a privately held, vertically integrated seafood harvesting and processing firm that’s headquartered in Seattle and has operations in six countries. It serves customers in nearly 20 countries.

Source: https://fishermensnews.com/trident-seafoods-nearing-sales-of-alaska-shoreside-plants/