While the growth of the fish in pool K1 accelerated considerably, those in pool K0 exceeded 1 kg earlier than expected.
Photo: Andfjord Salmon.
Norwegian aquaculture company Andfjord Salmon reported today that the overall biological performance remains strong at its Kvalnes facility in Andøya, Norway, with high growth rates, low mortality and high feed efficiency across both pools, K0 and K1.
Moreover, the total biomass on site has exceeded 650 tons (354 tons live salmon in K0, and 296 tons live salmon in K1), marking an all-time high for the land-based salmon farming company, which has its own proprietary flow-through system.
Located, as mentioned, in Andøya, in the Arctic archipelago of Vesterålen, Norway, Andfjord Salmon is developing what it describes as "the world's most sustainable and fish-friendly aquaculture facility of its kind."
In its first production cycle (2022–2023), the salmon farming company achieved an industry-leading survival rate of 97.5%, a feed conversion ratio of 1.05, a superior share of 91.1%, and required 1 kWh to produce one kilo of salmon.
Now, it has reported that the salmon in pool K0—whose successful release of about 350,000 smolt with an average weight of around 180 grams took place on September 30, marking the start of what the company then described as a significant expansion of its fish farming operations—has reached an average weight of 1 kilogram per fish ahead of schedule.
"Pool K0 continues to deliver strong results. The fish has reached 1 kilogram on average, almost 30% above Skretting's growth table, with an accumulated survival rate of 99.74% and a feed conversion ratio of 0.93. This confirms both the robustness of the biology and the efficiency of our flow-through system," said CEO of Andfjord Salmon, Martin Rasmussen.
Regarding pool K1, Andfjord Salmon said it has entered a phase of accelerated growth with results exceeding expectations. According to the company's statement, the growth momentum in this pool has strengthened significantly in recent weeks and is now a key driver of overall performance.
The average weight of fish in K1 has exceeded 400 grams, with growth approximately 25% above Skretting's growth table for the entire cycle, and between 40% and 50% above the table in the last two weeks alone.
Meanwhile, the cumulative survival rate in K1 —whose smolt release took place between November 10 and 12, releasing around 750,000 smolts with an average weight of approximately 160 grams—stands at 99.68%, with a feed conversion ratio of 0.85, which, in the company's words, reflects highly efficient feed utilization.
"The acceleration in K1 is particularly encouraging. Growth has stepped up over the past month, and the combination of strong biomass development, high survival rate and low feed conversion demonstrates that the biological conditions are good," Rasmussen commented. "This provides strong confirmation of scalability and repeatability in our production model," Andfjord Salmon CEO added.
The salmon farming company also reported that water temperatures have remained relatively high throughout the fourth quarter and January, and are currently around 6°C, approximately 1°C higher than during the previous production cycle, supporting favorable conditions for strong growth at its land-based flow-through fish farming facility at Kvalnes.
Regarding the progress of construction in Andøya, Andfjord Salmon took advantage of today's update to the Oslo Stock Exchange to report that its new main contractor, Entreprenør Harald Nilsen AS, and concrete specialist Norne have, through their site mobilization at Kvalnes, identified and implemented several site logistics improvements that will benefit the continued build-out.
The company added that construction work is currently progressing at a good pace and that they will soon begin installing the prefabricated concrete wall sections that have already been produced for the next pools. Meanwhile, Andfjord Salmon continues to prepare for a legal dispute against its former main contractor, for which it recently secured NOK 300 million as a "precautionary measure."
As announced in early December, Andfjord Salmon has filed a claim for compensation worth NOK 1 billion against its former main contractor, AF Hæhre & Contur Ans, alleging gross negligence in the civil works at its Kvalnes land-based farm. The company has now announced that, as this matter is expected to develop into formal litigation, it will not provide any further details at this time.
