The land-based facility, situated near Shanghai, will reduce CO2 emissions and avoid additional costs related to long-distance transport and special packaging
AKVA group is busy building RAS facilities to meet Nordic Aqua Partners’ (NOAP) goal of achieving 20,000 tons of production near Shanghai. The delivery of a 4,000-ton live salmon capacity for phase 1 will be ready by the end of 2023, while an additional 4,000 tons for phase 2 has already been kicked off to proceed with the expansion.
The first salmon reached around one-kilogram this summer of 2023, which means that NOAP is on time for the first harvest of five-kilogram salmon in Q1 2024.
“This is a really important step for AKVA Group, and our vision to be pioneers in land-based aquaculture. It will lift our activity level and give us valuable experience. We look forward to a continuous good cooperation with NOAP,” says Knut Nesse, CEO of AKVA group.
Developing as planned
Installation of AKVA group’s RAS technology started in December 2021 and is developing as planned. Throughout the planning phase, AKVA group has worked closely with NOAP to optimize the design and secure a smooth start-up when systems have been ready for stocking in fish.
“Growth performance has been good, which brings us closer to becoming the first local producer of truly sustainable and fresh salmon to the Chinese market. It is exciting to see the quick pace of development of our facilities, with the hatchery and parts of our administration facilities in place. I am confident that we will deliver according to plan”, says for his part Ragnar Joensen, CEO of NOAP.
Strategic reduction of CO2 emissions
Building a land-based salmon farm in Ningbo, near Shanghai in China means reduced CO2 emissions from flying in salmon from abroad and avoids additional costs related to long-distance transport and special packaging.
Within a five-hour truck drive from Ningbo, 100 million consumers will be reached, and another seven hours drive means a total of 800 million consumers reached. At the current Chinese consumption of Atlantic salmon, the target of 20,000 tons will cover only around 6% of the market demand.
Having renewable energy with a 400 GWh solar and wind power plant in the immediate vicinity of the farming site, the project becomes part of the green transition in China. Solar panels on the roof will cover approximately 25% of the energy consumption.
“From a worldwide perspective, this is an important strategic project for us. Farming of salmon close to the market, and based on green energy, is an attractive combination both for consumers and investors,” says Johan Fredrik Gjesdal, COO of AKVA group Land Based.
A global provider
AVKA Group is a global provider with offices, operations, and customers worldwide. They provide solutions and services, from single components and products to full production performance solutions. All their solutions and services work together to improve fish performance improving our customer’s sustainability and profitability.
They say innovation is a part of the AKVA Group DNA: they allocate substantial financial resources to develop more sustainable technologies for the global aquaculture industry, targeting improved fish performance as well as solutions to solve environmental issues, such as the challenge of fish escapees and problems with sea lice in the salmon industry.
“We help our customers to succeed by solving big and small challenges,” they assure.
