AquaBounty expands with third site in Kentucky, to join facilities in Indiana, and Prince Edward Island, Canada.
In a press release, GM salmon farmer AquaBounty writes that it has commenced a proposed underwritten public offering of common stock for fund a third site.
The company added that it has selected the American company Innovasea as the RAS tech provider for its planned 10,000-tonnes a year site called Farm 3.
Aquaculture solutions company Innovasea has been designing and building water treatment systems for more than 25 years. Last year, it acquired Water Management Technologies (WMT), which has now been absorbed into the company and is now a new business unit within Innovasea named Land Systems. For 25 years, WMT designed and supplied intake, effluent and complete recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) to commercial fish farms, aquaculture research entities and government hatcheries worldwide.
AquaBounty said that it is continuing to make progress on the design and engineering work for the facility, and based on advanced discussions with both its technology provider and engineering firm, it now expects the total build cost for Farm 3 will be in the range of USD 140 to USD 175 million.
In a filing, the company announced that it has commenced a proposed underwritten public offering of common stock, to use the net proceeds for working capital costs and general corporate purposes, including potentially purchasing land and towards costs associated with the construction or site development for a new production farm.
Construction is expected to begin in 2021, with a commercial-scale harvest of its genetically engineered-fast growing AquAdvantage salmon ready by 2023.
“We are pleased to announce Innovasea as our RAS provider for Farm 3, combining best-in-class technology with our experienced, passionate team,” said AquaBounty CEO Sylvia Wulf.
“Innovasea is a leader in the industry, combining deep expertise in implementation with intelligent, connected RAS technology used in tier-1 installations globally. Leveraging their RAS solutions and our AquAdvantage salmon, we believe we are building a next-generation, highly productive facility that will serve as a model for the industry.”
Wulf said that the company may be looking at other areas for its leading site. In October, the boss said she hoped a third farm, combined with its Indiana site and a second facility in Prince Edward Island, Canada, will push the company into profitability.
“In addition, though we previously identified Mayfield, Kentucky as our leading site for Farm 3, our subsequent confirmatory diligence has indicated that an alternate top site may be superior. The Commonwealth of Kentucky has been a tremendous partner in this process, and one of our alternate sites is located there. Our rigorous selection process has allowed us to pursue two additional sites located in the Midwest to ensure we have the optimal location for our farm,” added Wulf.
