Kvarøy Smolt to double capacity and cut power use
Norwegian salmon farm owner Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett AS is investing NOK 125 million (£10.2m) to upgrade and expand its Kvarøy Smolt facility.
The upgrade will reduce energy consumption by up to 50% while optimising growing conditions and welfare for the fish, said Kvarøy. The expansion will give Kvarøy Smolt capacity to produce up to 10 million smolt per year - nearly double its current volume - with a smaller energy footprint.
“This investment means we have better control in the smolt phase of production and that ultimately leads to increased production of fish,” said Alf-Gøran Knutsen, chief executive of salmon farmer Kvarøy Arctic and Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett.
“This project also lifts the total sustainability in our overall production of fish. We are always looking to improve, and this is a perfect example of how we are accomplishing that goal.”
Surplus heat
Kvarøy Smolt is situated in one of Norway’s largest industrial parks, Mo Industripark, in the town of Mo i Rana in the north of the country.
The company Mo Industrial Park produces oxygen, nitrogen and compressed air, and also provides services to the other companies in the park, which range from iron and steel production to computer technology and Kvarøy’s smolt production.
Kvarøy Smolt has ample access to water and surplus heat from surrounding industry and reduces energy consumption by buying hot water from the adjacent Mo Fjernvarme, which distributes hot water to the city. Kvarøy also utilises the residual cooling water from the furnaces of a nearby silicones and carbon products factory.
Residual resources
“Expansion of our facility in this location means we can support our own business and the surrounding businesses by harnessing and recycling energy. Through our collaborations, we do not need a greater fresh water supply. We’re fully utilising residual resources,” said project manager Stig Joar Krogli.
Kvarøy Smolt will renovate two production halls, install a new energy and treatment plant, create a new administration building, and optimise water quality throughout the production. New steel tanks from AKVA Group, each holding approximately 190,000 litres of water, will be installed to nearly double the volume of smolt production. Each tank will utilise an oxygen recovery and CO₂ stripping system, which reduces water consumption.
Through the Moakvaponi pilot program Kvarøy Smolt is one of several companies at Mo Industripark striving to build a circular system. Research is under way to determine if cleaned and dried waste from Kvarøy Smolt can be used to grow vegetables on a large scale inside the industrial park.
