Mowi Scotland strengthens capacity for combined lice and gill health treatment

A state-of-the-art wellboat that has been working for salmon farmer Mowi Scotland returned to Norway last week to be fitted with the latest delousing system, the FLS Caligus R600.

The 76.6-metre Inter Scotia is the second of two newbuilds that have been delivered to wellboat company Intership from Zamakona Yards Bilbao. The first vessel – the Inter Atlantic – in also contracted to Mowi Scotland and has an FLS Caligus R500 delousing system.

Inter Scotia is a battery hybrid vessel, designed by Salt Ship Design. It has a well capacity of 2,500m³, and is designed with a focus on promoting good fish welfare, fish handling and biosecurity.

The fish handling system is provided by MMC First Process, and the vessel is equipped with a high-capacity reverse osmosis freshwater production system, capable of producing 5,000m³ of freshwater per day for fish treatment.

Intership – now part of AIP following a merger with Aquaship - held an official naming ceremony and “open vessel” event for locals and visitors at its base at Hareid, near Ålesund in the Sunnmøre region, on Saturday. The event included guided tours on-board, brass-band music and gifts for the children. Inter Scotia’s godmother is Juliana Brandal, the wife of Intership’s chief executive Ole Peter Brandal.

Following the naming ceremony, invited guests were taken aboard Inter Scotia for a short voyage, and afterwards, the vessel went directly to Myklebust yard for installation of the FLS delouser. Intership said the combination of a freshwater bath and flushing fish through the FLS system is a very efficient and gentle way to remove sea lice and gill infections in the same operation.

'Open ship'

“This is the second naming ceremony we have arranged in less than a year [following the Inter Atlantic in June 2023], and we are delighted that we have had the opportunity to hold both at our ‘home ground’,” said Ole Peter Brandal.

“The importance of showcasing our boats and talking about our operation to the local community around us is substantial. Naturally, it is a great pleasure that the ‘open ship’ led to several hundred people coming aboard to look at the boat, the equipment, and to talk with the crew and staff. As I have mentioned many times before, our region is world-leading within our segment and it is important for us to create awareness around this, highlighting the opportunities that lie within the wellboat industry and the aquaculture industry in general.”

Intership has two further vessels due for delivery this year from Sefine Shipyard in Turkey. The hybrid-power wellboats have well capacities of 4,000m³ and 6,500m³, with the larger vessel understood to be destined for Mowi Scotland. This would be the largest wellboat operating in the Scottish industry.