Nofima’s bioprocessing pilot plant in Tromsø will be co-located with the new biotechnology facility being built in Kaldfjord near Tromsø and expanded from 150 square metres to around 1000 square metres.
This expansion will enable companies to take what they do in the laboratories a step further than what is possible at Nofima’s current bioprocessing pilot plant, from production on a pilot scale to a larger scope of product and process development on both a pilot and industrial scale.
“Marine bioprospecting deals with mapping the active substances found in marine species. Marine bioprocessing involves taking a step further so that the research results in new products. The new plant will be able to assist the companies with this. This bioprocessing pilot plant will be marketed to industrial players not only nationally, but also internationally,” says project manager Even Stenberg at Nofima.
RDA Troms has allocated NOK 22m towards the expansion. The total budget is NOK 26 million.
The new bioprocessing pilot plant is scheduled to open later this year.
Biotechnology company Marealis AS is working to develop products based on shrimp shell. Trials show that shrimp shell contains substances that can reduce high blood pressure. The company has used Nofima’s bioprocessing pilot plant in the work to develop commercial products.
The new industrial biotechnology facility, known currently by its Norwegian name Industri-Bioparken Tromsø, will be located at Kaldfjorden near Tromsø. SIVA, the Industrial Development Corporation of Norway, will own the 7000m² building through a subsidiary company. Public and private sector investment in the new facility will total around NOK 250 million.
