"Proximar is pleased to announce that the first fish of Atlantic salmon have been successfully transferred from the nursery department to the post-smolt grow-out facility (PSG)." This is how the land-based producer announced today the new stage in the development of its first generation of fish at its facilities at the foot of Mount Fuji, near Tokyo.
"As the first commercial producer of Atlantic salmon in Japan, we are enthusiastic about reaching this phase of the production with top-tier fish from our own smolt production," said Joachim Nielsen, CEO of Proximar. "Given that the PSG facility is based on the same technology as the nursery, we are confident that we will be able to continue to provide Atlantic salmon with excellent fish welfare- and growth conditions going forward," he added.
"It is a great milestone to finally initiate operations in the PSG facility," said Dharma Rajeswaran, COO of Proximar. "We have been waiting with excitement for this day, and I am pleased to see that the move into the new building has been successful. Our team has done a fantastic job in preparing for this transfer."
We learned of its establishment at the Proximar hatchery in October 2022, its successful transfer to the start feeding department, and its thriving in the nursery until the fish reached the average weight of 63 grams. The transfer to the first operational module in the PSG, which we have learned about today, is the penultimate stage of a first salmon batch that, step by step, has been meeting the planned production schedule.
Throughout this time, the fish have performed very well in terms of growth and have shown low mortality, demonstrating the good performance of the facility. The fish will be harvested in the third quarter of 2024. But not just salmon are on schedule at the RAS facility.
Production and construction continue on schedule
Following the completion of construction work in September, installation and testing of the RAS equipment has progressed rapidly on the first PSG module, allowing the growth building to be ready to receive these first batches according to schedule.
Installation of the RAS equipment in the remaining three modules will continue in the coming months, in line with the required capacity and production plan. Proximar recently ensured this by raising an additional NOK 140 million through a private placement to cover the additional costs associated with the construction of its land-based salmon farm in Japan.
There are currently nine batches in operation at Proximar's Oyama facility, with the tenth to be added by the end of December. So far, all remains on plan for the land-based salmon producer, which will provide more biological details in its production update in the first week of January 2024.
About Proximar
Proximar Seafood is a leading Norwegian land-based salmon farming company building and operating the first large-scale Atlantic salmon farm in Japan. By utilizing high-quality groundwater near Mount Fuji, they produce fresh Atlantic Salmon, harvested on the same day. Their strategic location near a major fish market provides cost and carbon footprint advantages. As a result, they emphasize their commitment to sustainable practices in aquaculture. With an annual production capacity of 5,300 tons of head-on salmon (HOG), the first harvest is expected to be serving fresh salmon to Japanese consumers in mid-2024.