Ceatech loss soars Kauai shrimp producer Ceatech USA Inc., hampered by production problems in its hatchery, said today its loss in the fiscal second quarter nearly doubled from a year ago.
Star-Bulletin staff
The company, which has never made a profit, lost $744,438, or 10 cents a share, in the period ending July 31, 2002, compared with a loss of $457,317, or 6 cents a share, a year ago.
Sales were up slightly at $892,170 vs. $869,891 a year ago.
However, revenue from farm shrimp sales, excluding hatchery products, fell to $831,673 from $872,343 in the second quarter of 2001. The company blamed the shortfall on a decrease in the average size of shrimp sold and the resulting decrease in average price per pound.
Ceatech has now lost nearly $9.1 million since it was founded in January 1995 and its financial statement auditor, noting that the company needs additional funding, expressed doubt about the company's ability to survive. Such concerns also were put forth in the previous quarter.
The company said in its quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the hatchery problems prevented the timely restocking of its 40 ponds with adequate seed.
Ceatech said it may take until the end of next January to produce enough juvenile shrimp to stock all of its existing 40 pounds and return to a normal harvest restocking schedule.
Ceatech, which is seeking to lease additional land and construct more ponds by issuing additional stock or by acquiring more debt, said in July it also received a notice from creditor Bank of America that said Ceatech is in noncompliance with some provisions of its loan from the bank and that the remaining loan of $2.3 million is currently due.
Ceatech said it is attempting to change or clarify the terms of the loan.
The company said it is continuing its efforts to obtain the rights to a portion of several thousand acres of state-owned land adjacent to Kekaha Park that was abandoned by the Amfac-owned Kekaha Sugar Co. when it shut down sugar operations in the area.
In the first quarter, Ceatech received approval from the state's Department of Agriculture for a $2.5 million loan and a conditional loan commitment from Central Pacific Bank for $2.3 million to be used for the construction of additional ponds and for working capital. However, those loan commitments expired due to issues related to the Bank of America loan.
As required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, both Ernest Dias, president and chief operating officer, and Edward Foley, executive vice president and chief financial officer, certified the financial results.
Ceatech's stock, which closed unchanged today at 40 cents, is at an all-time low.
