The CEO of the company highlighted the completion of their first pool at Kvalnes and successful verification of the laminar water flow technology.
Some days ago, the Norwegian Parliament’s (the Storting’s) Standing Committee on Business and Industry visited Andfjord Salmon at Kvalnes. “The committee is interested and engaged, and understands the value of innovation here at Andøya,” explained Martin Rasmussen, CEO of Andfjord Salmon AS.
The committee was given a thorough tour of the first fish farming pool at Kvalnes. The pool testing is complete, and it will be filled with smolt during the second quarter. It is not only the pool that stands ready, but the entire circular and innovative production line.
“The politicians asked a lot of questions about both our method and our location. We received a lot of feedback that it is very positive to have a” said Rasmussen.
On track for release of smolt in Q2 2022
Through successful testing, Andfjord Salmon has verified that the laminar flow in the pool works as planned. The first flow-through pool will produce 1,000 tonnes of salmon HOG, and the company has a total potential of 90,000 tonnes HOG.
“We will produce salmon in a completely new way, with very low energy consumption. In my view, the Storting politicians greatly appreciated the tour with us, where they gained insight into our completely new solutions,” Rasmussen assured.
The laminar water flow is the heart of Andfjord Salmon’s flow-through technology. The technology has enabled Andfjord Salmon to recreate wild salmon’s natural habitat on land.
“A flow-through system with laminar water flow reduces energy consumption and associated costs significantly as there is no need to lift, filter or heat the seawater.“
It’s simply because the seawater is clean and holds a perfect temperature as it is sourced directly from the nearby Andfjorden, which has the Gulf Stream as one of its closest neighbours.
Throughout this year’s first quarter, Andfjord Salmon has been working on fine-tuning and pool functions, components and the laminar water flow. The company has also started preparations for release of first smolt.
“We are on track for our planned smolt release in the second quarter. The smolt is growing well in the smolt facility, so now it is about identifying the ideal timing from a biological perspective,” said Rasmussen.
“For the next phase at Kvalnes (Phase 2), Andfjord Salmon has reported that has completed the scraping of the area. Blasting and excavation work started on the next pools. The pools closest to the first pool will be excavated first.“
Phase 1 and 2 at Kvalnes represent a total production volume of approximately 12,600 tonnes HOG, whereas phase 3 will take production volume up to 19.000 tonnes HOG.
Nutreco and Norwegian seafood company Eidsfjord Sjøfarm agreed to invest
Subsequent to year-end, Nutreco, a global leader in animal nutrition and aquafeed, and Norwegian seafood group Holmøy (through Eidsfjord Sjøfarm AS) agreed to invest in Andfjord Salmon, as part of a NOK 38 million private placement.
“Both Nutreco and Holmøy are experts in salmon biology. There is no doubt in my mind that a key contributing factor to securing their investments was the successful verification of the laminar water flow, which unlocks the ability to produce salmon in a highly energy efficient and sustainable way,” says Martin Rasmussen.
In addition, Andfjord Salmon entered into an operational feed supply agreement with Nutreco’s aquaculture business line, Skretting. Skretting will supply a feed that is specifically tailored to Andfjord Salmon’s flow-through technology to ensure optimal water quality, fish welfare and growth conditions. This will enable the production of a premium quality salmon.
Annual report
At the close of this edition, Andfjord Salmon AS has published its annual report for 2021, which includes the company sustainability report.
“2021 was a year of substantial progress for Andfjord Salmon, highlighted by the completion of our first pool at Kvalnes and successful verification of the laminar water flow technology. These important milestones, and many others, have brought us major steps towards realizing our ambition of building the world’s most fish-friendly and sustainable aquaculture facility of its kind. With this in regard, we look forward to releasing first smolt towards the end of the second quarter,” said Rasmussen, CEO of Norwegian company.
