Billion-kroner payout from Norway’s Aquaculture Fund to coastal municipalities

Norway’s Aquaculture Fund will distribute more than NOK 1.4 billion (€120 million / $127 million) to 143 municipalities and eight county councils involved in aquaculture activities, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries announced this week.

“This means a lot for the coast,” said Marianne Sivertsen Næss, Norway’s Minister of Fisheries and Oceans. “Through the Aquaculture Fund, we ensure that local communities that make sea areas available for aquaculture can take part in value creation. The money gives municipalities greater room for manoeuvre to invest in welfare services and local development for their residents.”

The ministry said the Directorate of Fisheries will handle the distribution “as soon as possible.”

Although this year’s amount is smaller than last year’s record NOK 4.7 billion payout, the government noted that aquaculture licence auctions are held every other year, and that total payments for 2024 and 2025 together will exceed NOK 6.1 billion (€525 million / $554 million).

“This is the largest total payment in a two-year allocation period,” Sivertsen Næss added. “The payment comes without any strings attached, and the municipalities are free to assess for themselves how the money best contributes to creating welfare for their residents.”

Established in 2017, the Aquaculture Fund allocates revenue from the sale of new aquaculture permits and the production levy on farmed fish. It is not a traditional fund but a mechanism for distributing income from the aquaculture industry to local and regional governments hosting farming activities.

The fund receives 55% of the proceeds from permit sales, along with 100% of the production tax on salmon. Eighty percent of its payouts go to municipalities, while 20% go to county councils. Municipalities that have cleared new space for aquaculture between 2023 and 2025 also receive an additional payment of up to NOK 5 million each.

Since its establishment, the fund has paid out more than NOK 17.1 billion (€1.47 billion / $1.55 billion) to Norway's coastal communities.

According to the ministry’s figures, Frøya municipality in Trøndelag will again receive the highest allocation at NOK 45.6 million, followed by Nærøysund with NOK 40.7 million and Senja with NOK 36.1 million. Hammerfest receives NOK 33.4 million, while Hitra will be paid NOK 29.7 million.

At the county level, Westland tops the list with NOK 58.7 million, followed by Nordland with NOK 57.6 million, Trøndelag with NOK 53 million, and Troms with NOK 42.8 million. Finnmark receives NOK 28.8 million, while Møre and Romsdal and Rogaland receive NOK 23.7 million and NOK 14.9 million respectively. Agder again sees the smallest share, with NOK 2.4 million.

The ministry said the Aquaculture Fund continues to “ensure that local communities benefit directly from the value created in Norwegian aquaculture.” The full list of allocations can be found on the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans website.