Aerial view of Bluegreen & SalMar's Marine Donut in operation in the Romsdal Fjord, Norway.
Photo: Bluegreen Group.
Less than a month after the Marine Donut was filled with fish for the second time with 185,000 salmon of about 3 kg each - the first test batch of 15,000 salmon of 2.5 kg was released in May last year - Bluegreen, the developer of the closed containment aquaculture system that was delivered to SalMar, reported that damage had recently occurred to the prototype.
According to the information provided, the incident, which was reported to the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries as part of standard procedure, did not result in any fish escape, and the necessary measures were quickly implemented to secure the facility and carry out repairs.
The development company said that, despite the damage, the production environment inside the SalMar-operated Marine Donut has remained excellent. The fish have shown low mortality, good appetite, and strong growth throughout the cycle.
"This confirms that the technology is working both technically and biologically – and strengthens our belief that Marine Donut represents a major step forward in the development of future closed containment systems," the Bluegreen release stated.
The Marine Donut, which reported in August 2024 that it had met "on all fish health parameters" after the first stocking, also delivered "promising results" on critical parameters such as water quality, fish health, and technical performance in its first full-scale test conducted in December last year.
Nevertheless, despite the quick solution now adopted, Bluegreen remarked that it takes such incidents very seriously and is working closely with SalMar to safeguard fish welfare, the environment, and the continued progress of the project.
"This is also a strong reminder of why prototyping is a crucial part of technology development," said its CEO, Nils-Johan Tufte. "Our role as a technology provider is to learn, improve, and deliver robust solutions through real-world experience," he added.
The technology company, an expert in closed-containment aquaculture systems, also said that the incident has provided "valuable lessons for the road ahead," resulting in design improvements that have already been implemented in the next version, Marine Donut 2.0.
"With the adjustments we've implemented, we're even better prepared for future deliveries. Marine Donut is a groundbreaking solution, and this experience has made the technology even more robust," claimed Geir Andresen, Commercial Director at Bluegreen, who also stressed that such developments are a normal part of innovation.
"No major breakthrough in aquaculture has come without early challenges," he stated. "It's through experiences like this that we build safe, innovative, and forward-looking technology. We never take incidents like this lightly but work systematically with observation, dialogue, and improvement – always with a strong focus on fish welfare," Andresen concluded.
Recently, the Norwegian technology company announced the expansion of its operations through a new land lease that secures it up to 40,000 square meters of space in a developing industrial area on Norway's southern coast.
"The plan is to establish a specialized yard dedicated to the production of large closed fish farming systems, including our own technology, the Marine Donut," Bluegreen said in this regard.
