Proximar Seafood AS has informed that last night, approximately 170,000 fish died at its facilities due to an incident caused by a disruption in the circulation pumps at its facility near Mount Fuji in Japan.
The land-based salmon company has attributed the incident to "human error" and a "breach of procedures", as the filling of one of the tanks where the fish were to be transferred was managed manually.
Furthermore, it has been detailed that subsequently, the oxygen levels in two tanks fell below critical levels, leading to the mortality of the fish. An investigation is currently underway to determine why the emergency oxygen system failed to supply the required levels.
Already in November 2024, Proximar Seafood announced that it experienced a breach in the support for a biofilter in one of its modules. As a consequence, the land-based salmon producer has had to lower its harvest forecast.
According to the company, the loss of fish will free up tank capacity, allowing changes to be made to the harvest plan in order to optimize production.
Finally, it has confirmed that the final repairs of the last biofilter will be completed on June 1, and full operations are expected to resume by mid-June.
During the first quarter of 2025, Proximar reported a 99.5% superior grade and continued strong market interest across Asia. Also, it reported continued strong fish health during the quarter, with survival rates exceeding 98%.
Additionally, Proximar secured approximately NOK 45 million (EUR 3.78 million / USD 4.08 million) in short-term loans and credit solutions to support its working capital needs.
The company also received its first insurance payments in April related to biofilter repair work and said it is actively pursuing business interruption claims to cover operational losses.
