Dordrecht, Netherlands-based aquaculture technology firm Pan Ocean Aquaculture (POA) is in talks with authorities in Malta to construct a 4,000-metric-ton seriola farm using its semi-submersible fish farm (SSFF) design.
POA Co-Founder and Director Philip Schreven told SeafoodSource that since its inception, his company has given considerable thought and time toward developing a cost-effective fish farm and mooring design suitable for high-energy environments.
The result is its American Bureau of Shipping-certified SSFF technology that is fully independent, and capable of being operated entirely remotely. The facility houses feed, ballasting, monitoring, and control systems in a central submerged location, leaving nothing on the surface of the ocean to be damaged during rough weather.
“As designers, we looked at the offshore development ideas in Norway and realized that the figures did not stack up, so we worked on it from a viewpoint of affordability. Rather than just waiting for someone to snap up the idea, we decided to build one and prove the concept. But first, we had a lot to learn about legislation, regulations, and licensing,” he said. “The SSFF has been redesigned and improved several times since we built the prototype. The design is easily adapted for different species and can be used fully submerged for species such as seriola or partially submerged for salmonids,”
After POA’s initial planning Malta became a leading prospective location to put the technology into action when the island nation’s government released a plan in 2021 outlining its plans to develop its 200-mile coastal exclusive economic zone (EEZ) for renewable energy and aquaculture projects. Plans for the regulatory framework overseeing the EEZ are still being finalized, but are expected to be outlined in a bill for approval by the Maltese parliament in the near future.
“The Maltese government approached us, seeking companies to independently finance, operate, manage, and develop aquaculture operations within the new EEZ, declaring its intention to fast-track planning and environmental permitting,” Schreven said. “We found that the water temperatures and conditions there lined up well to farm seriola, and we now have our own fish biologists and aquaculturists on the team who specialize in this species.”
POA is currently seeking …
