
AKVA secures RAS contract worth £25 million
The aquaculture supplier announced in October that it has entered into a letter of intent with salmon farmer Cermaq Chile SA regarding deliveries for the construction of a recirculating aquaculture systems plant. The RAS system was originally to be delivered by Billund Chile.
Now, at the beginning of February, AKVA group has announced that the agreement linked to a RAS contract for the new smolt facility in the Los Lagos region has been signed.
The plant will be built near the city of Paragua, located on the Chacao Canal, around 40 miles from Puerto Montt.
The project, which has been named Nueva PCC, has previously been mentioned as having a production capacity of 14 million smolts per year with an average minimum weight of 150 grams.
Sludge used for fertiliser
The plant will also have what is described as high-tech sludge treatment, which will transform the sludge into a by-product for the production of fertiliser for agriculture.
The geographical location is described as strategic since it allows direct loading to wellboats.
The total investment for Cermaq will be approximately US $100 million (£80.5m) and the value of the contract related to the letter of intent for AKVA group is approximately €30m (£25m).
30-month project
In a brief comment to LandbasedAQ, AKVA group chief executive Knut Nesse said that AKVA has undertaken to take over a smolt facility that has been started by Billund Chile.
“As a consequence of Billund's bankruptcy, AKVA has been engaged to complete the project. This will take approximately 30 months,” he said.
In a similar case in Norway, AKVA group will also complete the construction of Årdal Aqua's facility.