Portugal’s offshore aquaculture revolution: Mariculture Systems Portugal

“We believe offshore aquaculture is the future, and we intend to lead that movement globally, with Portugal as our spearhead,” says Mariculture Systems CEO Yaron Bar-Tal, talking to WeAreAquaculture from his office in Tel-Aviv, Israel, together with colleagues Peter Beringer in the Netherlands and Fausto Brito e Abreu in Portugal.  

Motivated by the rising global demand for seafood, Mariculture Systems is undertaking a highly ambitious project to bring sustainable, large-scale fish farming to offshore environments. That quest begins in Portugal, whose offshore waters will be the proving ground for the company’s proprietary CORALIS fish farming platform, designed to produce up to 8,000 tonnes of fish per year, with an emphasis on sustainability and minimizing environmental impact.   

The technology behind Mariculture Systems was originally developed in Israel by maritime experts combining expertise in offshore rigs, fish husbandry and aquaculture technology. This collaborative effort gave rise to CORALIS, an offshore production platform designed for industrial-scale fish farming. The project, Yaron explains, focuses on achieving sustainability by automating as much as possible, using advanced AI for monitoring fish health and welfare, and for automated control mechanisms such as lifting and lowering cages according to weather conditions.  

"Our first projects are focused on sea bream and sea bass, which have well-known farming protocols,” Yaron explains, but the system is designed to be adaptable for other species. "We intend to move to more expensive species like salmon, yellowtail, and even tuna. The platform can be adapted for any of these fish." 

An expert in environmental protection and wastewater treatment technologies, Yaron joined the company one year ago, in what he describes as a “natural transition” into aquaculture. "It’s all about growing fish in a sustainable way and helping ocean conservation," he says, explaining that below the floating fish farming platforms, the company intends to construct artificial reefs to support marine biodiversity. 

Portugal's unique coastal environment and high seafood consumption make it an ideal location for Mariculture Systems to launch its offshore fish farming project, explains Peter Beringer, a Dutch commercial strategist who has spent over 25 years in the country.  

"Portugal is a major seafood market, consuming 60 kilograms per person annually. That means about 600,000 tonnes of fish are consumed here, but only 200,000 tonnes are produced domestically." Given this high demand and the country’s long fishing and maritime heritage, the need for additional local production is evident, he says. 

Moreover, Portugal’s coast offers the perfect conditions to test the capabilities of the CORALIS platform. "The western coast is especially promising, with its more challenging conditions, where we expect to truly test the limits of our platform," Yaron explains. The system is designed to withstand waves up to 17 metres high, making Portugal's Atlantic coast ideal for demonstrating the robustness of the solution, with the cages submerged to calmer, deeper waters during rough seas. 

And the team counts on high-level local knowledge too, with the addition of Fausto Brito e Abreu to the team at the beginning of 2024. As the Portuguese Government’s former Director-General for Maritime Policy, Fausto, an Oxford University-educated biologist and government advisor, helped develop the Portuguese National Ocean Strategy.  

"Having been part of drafting the National Ocean Strategy, I feel proud of the work we did to make Portugal proactive in ocean management," Fausto says, adding he is “excited to be part of” a project that sees the practical implementation of those policies, in an effort to reduce the country's dependency on seafood imports. “It’s a rare opportunity in life to move from policy-making to actually implementing a project that embodies those policies." 

One of Portugal’s key maritime policies is the zoning of offshore regions for wind farming – which the team say is a golden opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities of the CORALIS system. 

“The Portuguese government is very open to the idea of coexistence - combining economic uses like offshore wind and aquaculture,” Fausto highlights, noting that while fishing activity is not permitted between wind turbines, stationary fish farming fits the bill perfectly.  

"In Portugal, space onshore and near the coast is limited, and expanding there could have detrimental effects on the environment, such as destroying kelp forests or other ecosystems,” he says, adding that offshore aquaculture has the benefit of being in areas with stronger currents, which results in better dispersal of nutrients and less accumulation of waste, such as fish feed and other organic matter, which can be harmful if concentrated in nearshore environments. 

Experiments are underway in the North Sea and elsewhere with low-trophic aquaculture co-located with wind turbines – but there’s a huge opportunity for finfish aquaculture, with the right technology, the team point out. 

“Wind farms are generally placed where there is a lot of wind, which usually means higher waves. Our solution is uniquely positioned to coexist with offshore wind because it is designed to be cost-effective even in those challenging conditions,” Yaron adds. “We believe the synergies between offshore wind and aquaculture are significant, offering a very attractive dual-use model for investors.” 

Currently, Mariculture Systems Portugal is focused on several key activities to bring the project to life. The team are in the final stages of securing permits, including voluntary environmental impact assessments, to begin production at a location 12 kilometres off the southern coast of Portugal, near the traditional fishing town of Vila Real de Santo António.  

The regulatory process has been complex – and somewhat surprising for Fausto, experiencing the permitting process from within the private sector for the first time.  "Despite all the proactive policies and incentives we’ve worked on in government, and despite everyone being in favour, everyone loving the project, getting a project like this through all the bureaucratic steps is still incredibly challenging," he notes.

"We could have avoided an environmental impact assessment by taking a different path, but we decided to undergo it voluntarily because we care about ESG responsibilities and want to comply fully with environmental standards,” Yaron points out. The company expects to receive the necessary concession approvals for their chosen site by the close of 2024 or early 2025.  

On the technology side, CORALIS has undergone extensive testing in wave pools and has been validated by DNV, a maritime classification society known for its rigorous standards. "We know it can withstand 17-meter peak waves, which is crucial for both our peace of mind and for securing insurance coverage," he says. 

"Right now, we’re working on multiple fronts. Engineering is ongoing - deciding on specific components like the cameras we’ll use, which AI algorithms will be implemented, feeding systems, and the exact cranes and winches,” he explains. “Every choice we make has a massive impact on the project's efficiency, cost, and sustainability." 

Another major challenge in a fish farming project of this scale is securing a stable supply of juveniles to stock the immense facility – as well as enough feed for an annual production of 8,000 tonnes of sea bream. Looking ahead to sales, the team say they are also engaged in setting up partnerships with Portuguese retail distributors, who have already shown interest in their planned production. 

The team are working to secure the necessary financing for the project, to cover both capital expenditures needed for building the platform and the working capital required to grow the fish until production revenues begin.  

"We need around $75 million to get from where we are now to the point where we start generating revenue," Yaron explains. To achieve this, the company is currently engaging with two Portuguese investment banks with extensive experience in similar large-scale infrastructure projects. 

Peter adds that another key aspect in developing the project is building relationships and engaging the local community. "The support we’ve received has been remarkable, although not without challenges, as not everyone shared our initial ambition," he admits. To build social acceptance, they engaged local stakeholders, including the fishing community, with some unexpectedly positive outcomes.  

"The community appreciated our coming and did not perceive us as taking valuable resources away. Our strategy is aimed at growing within the community and creating opportunities for them." 

With the global demand for fish projected to increase dramatically by 2050, the need for innovative solutions is urgent – and Peter envisions that Portugal can play a critical role in this transformation.

In addition to establishing supportive frameworks through its National Ocean Strategy, Portugal has taken a lead role in promoting the blue economy, including hosting the UN Ocean Conference in 2022. This has helped position Portugal as a hub for maritime innovation and sustainable development, he points out. 

“By being proactive in policy-making and leveraging its geographic advantage, the country has the potential to become a leader in offshore aquaculture," he says.  

"We’re also engaging with stakeholders at the European level," Peter adds. "We’re working with the European Commission and Parliament in Brussels to push for broader acceptance of offshore aquaculture as a legitimate and necessary part of the solution to global food security." 

"It’s about technology, but it’s also about how it impacts people, societies, and economies. That’s what makes this so exciting."