Great Northern Salmon has been awarded a USD 2 million (EUR 1.7 million) grant from the Maine Technology Asset Fund to aid its construction of a land-based salmon farm in Millinocket, Maine, U.S.A..
Great Northern Salmon (GNS), formerly known as Katahdin Salmon, is planning to develop a land-based salmon recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility in Millinocket at the site of the former Great Northern Paper Co. paper mill. Created by Xcelerate Aqua, Great Northern is aiming to build a facility capable of farming 7,500 metric tons (MT) of salmon a year.
The new grant came from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI), and sources its funds from a voter-approved R&D bond with USD 25 million (EUR 21.2 million) in funding. GNS, along with 22 other businesses in Maine, have all received a share of the funding – which is intended to help support “forward-looking products and technology and drive growth in Maine's burgeoning innovation economy.”
“GNS would like to thank the Governor and MTI for our USD 2 million award towards aquaculture development in Millinocket,” GNS said in a statement. “GNS has been built on strong private/public collaboration which is vitally important in developing new industries in Maine.”
Eligible uses for the grant include capital construction and renovation of existing facilities – and GNS is doing both by rehabilitating the former settling lagoon of the paper mill, which was a brownfield site, and by building its new facility. According to the grant proposal by GNS, the USD 2 million in funding is being matched by USD 284 million (EUR 240 million) in funding provided by investors in the company.
"These awards will help innovative Maine companies develop new products and technology compete on the global stage and provide our renowned research organizations with funding to continue groundbreaking research and development," Maine Governor Janet Mills said in a release. "These projects, matched by significant private sector investment's, will support thousands of good jobs and provide economic benefits for years to come."
GNS has also received grants from other government-lead sources, including a USD 5 million (EUR 4.2 million) grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and a USD 1 million (EUR 847,000) grant from the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.
