Mowi-backed salmon farmer Nova Sea has announced its investment in a closed aquaculture system supplied by Fishglobe.
The agreement, reached in mid-May, involves Nova Sea implementing the largest version of Fishglobe’s closed technology for its operations.
As part of the partnership, Nova Sea will also acquire two of Fishglobe’s development licenses. “We are investing in a completely new technology for Nova Sea, focusing on fish health as our top priority,” said Nova Sea CEO Tom Eirik Aasjord. “Our goal is to have the healthiest farmed fish in the country with the highest survival rates. Participating in the development of new production technologies is crucial for us to better protect our fish and master new methods alongside conventional farming.”
Fishglobe has previously tested smaller versions of the technology, but this collaboration with Nova Sea marks the first full-scale food fish production. Tormod Skålsvik, Nova Sea’s business developer, expressed confidence in the full-scale test’s potential success, citing positive results from smaller post-smolt production globes in Rogaland.
Nova Sea highlights that it has had no escape incidents for many years, and the closed system is expected to further mitigate this risk. The system will initially be tested to see if it reduces other challenges by shortening the production time at sea, with salmon kept in the closed system during the initial phase.
While Nova Sea will continue to focus primarily on conventional farming, it believes that transitioning to closed systems at strategic locations can help break infection chains and provide other benefits, Skålsvik added.
The Fishglobe 30k, the globe Nova Sea will use, has been in development for years but faced delays due to ground rent tax issues. This project builds on Fishglobe’s existing full-scale post-smolt production in Lysefjorden. “We are incredibly proud to have a renowned company like Nova Sea join this project,” said Fishglobe CEO Tor Hellestøl. “This will be a fully Norwegian project, involving farming in Nordland, technology from Rogaland, construction in Østlandet, and suppliers from across the coast.”
Fishglobe has also signed agreements to supply similar technology on a smaller scale to an undisclosed international customer, indicating significant future contracts and a need for recruitment to support these projects. The globes are scheduled for delivery in 2025 and 2026, with contracts totalling over NOK 500 million ($47.5 million).
