Nordic Halibut AS (NOHAL) has started the construction of a new grow-out site in Grønset, Møre & Romsdal. The new Grønset site is located in Kvernesfjorden near NOHAL’s other operational grow-out sites in Ørjavik and Krekvikbogen. The North-West region of Norway is perfectly suited for sea-based halibut farming due to the ideal cold-water habitat.
This will be NOHAL’s third grow-out site and will consist of 12x 160meter cages, a production volume of 480.000m3 and have a stand-alone biomass capacity of 3.000 tonnes. Combined with the already producing licenses, NOHAL has secured the production capacity to realize phase one of the volume ramp-up plan of 4.500 tonnes HOG in 2026, both at sea and land.
For the first time in halibut farming history 160-meter cages are being deployed into operations. This is the same size used in the largest sea-based salmon farming sites and represent a key enabler for scaling of sea-based production volumes in a cost-efficient way.
– This is another important milestone for Nordic Halibut. Larger cages located in our defined production HUB in Møre & Romsdal enables us to scale our production in a cost-efficient way and at the same time ensure that the fish is kept stress free throughout the production cycle. Density levels per kg/m3 will be comparable to our other sea-sites which has proven low mortality rates and consistent output. We are very excited that we now can produce sustainable superfood free of antibiotics and chemicals also at Grønset, says CEO Edvard Henden.
Sea-cages, moorings, nets, cameras, and feed automats are currently being installed and first fish set to sea at Grønset is expected during Q4 2021.
In addition, as part of the volume ramp-up plan, the on-growing facility at Averøy is currently being upgraded to meet increased delivery of juveniles in 2022. NOK 17 million are being invested in the facility to improve water quality, temperature control and increased capacity for medium size juveniles (50-100 gram). Operability of improvements and construction will be completed during Q1 2022 with significant increased biological performance expected going forward.
The establishment of the third sea site combined with the strategic investments at Averøy is an important step towards realizing the production target of 4.500 tonnes HOG in 2026 and 9.000 tonnes HOG within 2030.
For more information, please contact:
CEO Edvard Henden, edvard@nordichalibut.no, +47 91 14 11 65