Great Northern Salmon (GNS), a developer of land-based fish farms in the United States, has formed a strategic alliance with the Norwegian company Eyvi.
The agreement establishes Eyvi as the supplier of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for GNS’s planned salmon farm at Millinocket in northern Maine and for future endeavors, while GNS will gain from a substantial strategic investment by Eyvi.
“Eyvi has been working to establish a position for expansion into the US, while Great Northern Salmon has worked to strengthen its position with partners and investors with deep land-based expertise. The strategic synergies between the parties here became obvious in dialogues throughout this winter,” the companies said in a press release.
8,000-tonne trout RAS Hima’s 8,000-tonne trout farm in Rjukan, Norway, developed by Eyvi, is scheduled for its inaugural commercial harvest this summer. This is a RAS facility of comparable size to GNS’ Millinocket facility that is currently being developed.
Meanwhile, GNS has built a solid foothold in Maine with a team of seasoned professionals from the industry. The company has obtained essential permits and is now progressing with site preparations to establish a highly efficient construction process for its 7,500-tonne RAS salmon facility located on the bed of a large lagoon formerly part of the Great Northern Paper company’s mill.
The companies emphasize that the GNS management team possesses extensive experience in various development and permitting processes both domestically and internationally, as well as a broad background in construction and operations. This expertise is a unique asset in a market where local knowledge is scarce.
They emphasize that proof shows it is crucial for US projects to be carried out successfully to have a competent, seasoned, and well-networked team in place. Similar to GNS, the Eyvi team possesses extensive experience gained from various RAS facilities over the years, including large-scale operations.
„Die Erfahrung und das Design-Thinking bei Eyvi beeindrucken uns“, so Marianne Naess, CEO von GNS. “We have also identified important synergies from working together on the development of US aquaculture and from strategic investments made by some of Eyvi’s owners in Great Northern Salmon.”