Mitsubishi and Maruha Nichiro have established a joint venture called “ATLAND Corporation” to farm Atlantic salmon on land using proceeds from Japan’s first blue bond.
Through the joint venture Mitsubishi and Maruha Nichiro plan to build a land-based recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility with a capacity of 2,500 metric tons (MT) (live weight equivalent) in Nyuzen Town in Toyama Prefecture, aiming to start operations in 2025 and to complete the first delivery in 2027. The two companies announced the new project at a joint news conference attended by Toyama Prefectural Governor Yaro Nitta, Nyuzen Town Mayor Haruto Sasashima, and executives of both companies.
The RAS will use a combination of groundwater originating from the Kurobe River and deep-sea water from Toyama Bay. Warm summer water temperatures are a limitation on sea-based salmon farming in Japan, but the deep-sea water remains cold throughout the year. The deep sea water off the coast of Nyuzen has previously been used for cooling during the production of packed rice and raising oysters.
"The low-temperature stability of deep sea water has been highly evaluated, and it will become a new industry in the town,” Mayor Sasashima said, according to a Japanese-language article in the Kita Nihon Shimbun.
Managing Executive Officer of Maruha Nichiro Satoshi Kokaji said that the location in Nyuzen Town is ideal for a RAS system.
“Both deep sea water and groundwater can be used in abundance, and there is no other place more suitable for land-based aquaculture,” Kokaji said.
The plan for the project was previously announced on 30 June. The companies said the investment ratio will be 51 percent for Mitsubishi, and 49 percent for Maruha Nichiro, both of which are based in Tokyo.
Maruha Nichiro is planning to use proceeds from Japan’s first blue bond to finance the project. On 29 September, the company issued a notice detailing the issuance of blue bonds in late October, which will by for JPY 5 billion (USD 34.1 million, EUR 33.9 million) over a period of five years, via a “Blue Finance Framework.” The lead underwriters for the bond are Mizuho Securities Co., Ltd., Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities Co., Ltd., and the Tokyo based Rating and Investment Information (R&I) verified that the RAS was an adequate use of the blue bonds based on the Guidelines for Blue Finance stipulated by the International Finance Corporation.
R&I determined that the project qualifies for the use of blue bond proceeds, as it falls under the categories of “prevention and control of pollution” and “environmentally sustainable fishery and aquaculture.” Maruha Nichiro will report once a year on the environmental effects of the project as well giving a summary of the project and the amount of fish shipped.
Mitsubishi already owns Oslo-based salmon farming company Cermaq, which it purchased from the Norwegian government in 2014.
Mitsubishi Corporation Food Industry Group Agriculture and Fisheries Division General Manager Akihiko Soga added that the companies plan to establish a new brand of salmon using the RAS.
"In the future, we aim to brand salmon from Nyuzen Town, and we would also like to consider exporting it to Asian countries,” Soga said.
