Hail Atlantis
Akva Group, Sinkaberg-Hansen and Egersund Net have established a new company, Atlantis Subsea Farming, which aims to develop submersible fish-farming facilities for salmon on an industrial scale.
The work on Atlantis started in summer 2014, using experts from all three companies and they have recently applied for six development licences to enable large-scale testing of the new technology and operational concept.
The project aims both to contribute to better and more sustainable use of current farming sites as well as to enable use of more exposed sites than is currently possible. The goal is to achieve production gains and improve fish welfare by submerging the facilities, as they will be far less exposed to the environmental and physical conditions than in a surface position.
Large-scale testing will focus on third-party documentation of fish welfare and production performance, the technological capabilities of the system, and safeguarding the occupational health and safety of employees.
There are many risks associated with the project, and the testing of the technological and operational solutions requires large-scale testing beyond what can be done in today's fish farms based on traditional operating methods. The further progress of the project and the company’s ability to ensure a methodical approach is thus dependent on being granted development licences.
Although Atlantis represents a significant leap forwards in terms of innovation, it is also an objective to keep costs at a level that helps strengthen the industry's competitive position. The aim is also that the technology and operating methods developed through Atlantis can be made available and be adopted by the industry relatively quickly.
