Bigger boat arrives to match fish farmer's big ambitions in Orkney
Salmon farmer Scottish Sea Farms has just taken delivery of a new workboat designed to handle the company’s move to bigger pens in high energy locations.
At 21 metres long and with an 8-metre beam, Burra Sound, built by Dutch yard Nauplius Workboats, completes the £6 million modernisation programme at Bring Head.
The £2.2m vessel will not only be able to accommodate the site’s twelve 120m pens but is also geared up for a future expansion to 160m pens.
Stronger equipment
Bring Head farm manager Jeff Taylor told SSF’s newsletter, The Source, that the farm’s move slightly further out to a deeper, higher energy location, and from 80m to 120m pens, provided optimal growing conditions but also required heavier infrastructure.
“It’s very tidal here so to keep the nets in place we use nine-tonne sinker tubes, which we have been lifting with a crane.
“This new boat is fitted with two tugger winches with leads running over the sides so we can lift the nets up directly through the lifting points on the cages. It is safer for the fish and the crew, and more cost effective than fitting winches on to each pen, and will allow us to treat and harvest in all weather conditions.”
Taylor worked with the builders on the design of Burra Sound, the third vessel delivered to SSF by Nauplius and similar to another SSF boat, the Fair Isle. Gerrit Knol, technical director for Nauplius Workboats, said: “We are delighted to have worked once again with Scottish Sea Farms on the delivery of Burra Sound.
“Designed for demanding tidal environments and larger cage systems, the vessel will support the team at Bring Head in operating safely and efficiently with the farm’s larger pen infrastructure.”
Reducing costs
SSF’s vessel and infrastructure manager Ross Stevenson told The Source: “It will improve costs greatly because there are days here when we’ve sometimes got two or three contract boats helping. Now we’ll be able to do most of that work ourselves with Burra Sound.”
Bring Head, which was also equipped with a £1.7m, 300-tonne feed barge as part of its redevelopment, was due to finish harvesting its current crop this month. Then, after the next cycle, the plan is to install eight 160m pens, six of which will be stocked at any one time.
SSF, which is owned 50-50 by Norwegian salmon farming big hitters SalMar and Lerøy Seafood Group, harvested 40,400 gutted weight tonnes last year, and has guided for 43,000 gwt this year.
