Trondheim, Norway-headquartered Norway Royal Salmon (NRS) intends to introduce the first fish to its semi-submersible offshore farming facility this summer, and to harvest these in the first half of 2022, according to its newly-published 2020 annual report.
Developed by NRS and Aker Solutions for use in harsh areas, and operated by the former’s subsidiary Arctic Offshore Farming AS (AOF), the fish farm will enable the producer to utilize a wider area of exposed Norwegian waters, while having a limited environmental footprint.
In 2018, the Directorate of Fisheries granted NRS eight permits with a 5,990-metric ton (MT) maximum allowed biomass (MAB) for the development of AOF.
The report states that NRS, through AOF, has placed “considerable effort and investments” in order to realize the project, which was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In his CEO message, Charles Høstlund wrote that the future-oriented aquaculture facility will open up new areas for salmon farming.
“New and groundbreaking production technology dimensioned for severe winter storms in harsh areas will give us great opportunities for growth. We believe that we in Norway must take advantage of and strengthen the comparative advantage that our coastline gives us, and that offshore aquaculture will be an important part of a future aquaculture strategy,” he said.
NRS’s report also underlines that it believes that salmon production on Iceland will succeed, and offers that the production by Arctic Fish supports this stance.
From its sites in the Westfjords of Iceland, Arctic Fish harvested 7,443 MT in 2020 and expects to increase this to 12,000 this year, while its production costs are now in line with the average achieved by Norwegian fish farming companies.
In February this year, the company was listed on Euronext Growth on the Oslo Stock Exchange, and as part of that process, NRS increased its holding to 51.3 percent.
“Arctic Fish has a significant growth potential and estimates a harvest volume of approximately 24,000 MT of salmon in 2025,” it said. “In addition, the proximity to a new smolt facility with RAS technology gives control over the value chain.”
Meanwhile, construction is “well underway” at NRS’s new smolt facility in Dåfjord in Karlsøy, Norway, the company said. This facility, which is strategically placed in relation to the producer’s activity in Troms and Finnmark, has an annual production permit for 2,400 MT and 10 million smolt distributed between standard and post smolt.
The first roe is planned to be introduced this spring and full production is expected from 2022.
NRS generated a consolidated operating revenue of almost NOK 5.12 billion (USD 618.9 million, EUR 512 million) last year, compared with nearly NOK 5.59 billion (USD 675.7 million, EUR 559 million) in 2019. Its operational EBIT totaled NOK 246.3 million (USD 29.8 million, EUR 24.6 million), down from NOK 542.8 million (USD 65.6 million, EUR 54.3 million). Its farming operations harvested 30,509 MT in 2020, an increase of 12 percent compared to the previous year.
Photo courtesy of Norway Royal Salmon
