News post-smolt
Kelly Cove Salmon to build $72M RAS facility in New Brunswick

Kelly Cove Salmon Ltd., which is part of the Cooke Seafood group of companies said it has received the go signal from New Brunswick to proceed with its plans to build a C$72 million (US$53.6 million) recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) post-smolt aquaculture facility for Atlantic salmon in the Canadian province.

Following the successful completion of an Environmental Impact Assessment, the Nova Scotia-based subsidiary of Cooke received a Certification of Determination to Proceed from the New Brunswick Department of Environment and Local Government for the construction of land-based facility in the rural community of Bayside, Charlotte County, N.B.

The post-smolt facility is just one of the investments Cooke is making in Charlotte County. Earlier this year, Cooke’s new, C$21-million freshwater hatchery in Pennfield became operational, and the company recently completed a C$50-million expansion at its salmon processing plant in St. George.

The facility will be located in the Champlain Industrial Park alongside the Passamaquoddy Bay. , the new facility will be a world-class recirculating aquaculture system (RAS).

Kelly Cove initiated planning of the project back in 2017. The company obtained EIA approval earlier this year for ground source wells to supply the facility with water. Associated with this facility are two water pipeline corridors and a marine loading facility.

“Hybrid systems, involving a mix of land and marine-based fish farming will continue to be part of our future. We have been operating land-based salmon hatcheries and marine farms sustainably for 38 years,” according to Joel Richardson, vice president of public relations for Cooke. “Innovative scientific technologies bring a new opportunity for greater production in ocean waters by shortening time Atlantic salmon spend in marine cages.”

The project will take three years to complete and create more than 340 direct construction jobs, and 222 indirect and induced jobs.