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Laksesystemer, VP Vélaverkstæði ehf form aquaculture solutions partnership

Norwegian aquaculture technology company Laksesystemer is partnering with Icelandic machine shop VP Vélavebrkstæði ehf (VP) to provide equipment and solutions for Iceland’s aquaculture companies.

Ole Gabriel Kverneland, general manager of aquaculture lighting solutions firm Laksesystemer, said that the recent slowdown of the aquaculture sector in Norway is an opportunity for Laksesystemer to seek opportunities elsewhere. Norway’s parliament passed a bill on May 2023 mandating an additional resource rent tax on aquaculture with a tax rate of 25 per cent.

“The new aquaculture tax has obviously put many projects on hold in Norway,” Kverneland said. “We immediately foresaw that the stagnation in Norway would represent an opportunity for other countries producing salmon.”

He said that the aquaculture sector in Iceland is very active.  Previously, Laksesystemer also signed a partnership deal with artificial intelligence (AI) feeding system developer ReelAppetite.

“VP that will help us with installations and ‘feet on the ground’ in this important market for land-based aquaculture technology,” he said. “Big projects on land is a perfect match for our newly developed technology focusing on gentle and precise feeding.”

Lakseystemer’s products are a perfect match for VP’s remote support solutions, according to Jón Reynir Andrésson, vice- president and chief executive officer of VP. “In particular, the focus on gentle feed handling and use of AI to prevent feed spill is something that can greatly contribute both to financial and environmental sustainability of the industry.”

“We believe Lakseystemer has developed technology that can solve many of the challenges in land based aquaculture,” he said. “There are not many companies specializing in land based aquaculture the way that Laksesystemer does, so their experience and technology is sure to be valuable for our market in Iceland.”