I personally am considering taking a position in CSS when some issues become clearer to me. These issues specifically revolve around their Yellowtail operations which I firmly believe must be the cornerstone of this business. The Blue-fin project currently is a distraction but certainly will add significant value in the future when and if successful.
I need convincing that the Yellowtail are a winner and my views will be influenced by the success of the current year class of stock.
At the moment the gulf is experiencing temperatures less than 15 deg/c – at this temperature Yellowtail will not grow and in fact they most likely will lose condition. There will also be an increase of mortality below this temperature exponentially increasing to 12 deg/c below which the situation becomes potentially catastrophic.
http://www.marine.csiro.au/~lband/web_point/
Whilst you cannot control the environment you can mitigate the above significantly by dietary composition, feed practice and stock handling/throughput. I am unable to get information insofar as what actions are being undertaken in a feed sense. This is not freely available from the company nor from the feed company (Skretting – I think). The only dietary work I can identify is work being done through the CRC but this relates mostly to juvenile fish and larvae.
IMO they should be cropping yellowtail by maximising juvenile stock performance ashore over winter (in the onshore facilities they are talking about for Blueys and using artificial lighting and temperature control)before transfering them to sea when biomass dictates and when water temperatures will allow a continuation of significant and efficient growth. The same will facilitate in excess of 9 month harvest window if managed properly. More involved I know but that is simply a logistical issue IMO.
I had a poke around their new offshore feed vessel whilst it was under construction and I agree it is very flash but it is hardly state of the art as they have spun. Feeding all pens simultaneously would equate to current best practice. Having said that it is a significant improvement to the methods they had.
In summary I would like to see more focus on the Yellowtail and make this a successful business – and less on spinning brilliant stories from the ordinary.
Prove up the Yellowtail and they get my coin.
All IMO and DYOR.
Cheers
CSS Price at posting:
61.5¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Not Held
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