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Nordic Aqua Partners begins work on China facility

Construction work at the Nordic Aqua Partners’ (NAP) land-based facility in Ningbo, China, will start in January, according to the company.

The Denmark-based firm is billing the facility as “the first fully integrated and commercially viable RAS facility in China.” The land-based fish farm will have an initial capacity of 8,000 metric tons of Atlantic salmon. There are plans to expand that to 16,000 MT and later to 40,000 MT in the future.

In a recent press release, NAP said it has signed a five-year agreement with Benchmark Genetics to be the genetics provider for the facility. The first eggs will be delivered from Benchmark’s Icelandic operations in the fourth quarter of 2021, as soon as the hatchery facilities are up and running in Ningbo.

Ragnar Joensen, chairman of the board of NAP, said  Benchmark’s “R&D capabilities and product offering, adapted for land-based RAS production add to the benefits of signing long-term agreement” with Benchmark.

“We have already supplied eggs to China since 2002 and have established a logistic system that so far has worked successfully, even during the challenging times of COVID-19,” said Geir Olav Melingen, commercial director at Benchmark.