Scottish Sea Farms will invest £35m in a new major freshwater site near Oban and has purchased the MRC Barcaldine site.
This investment is part of a total £70m spend anticipated over the next few years as it plans to build a new land-based RAS freshwater facility at the site for rearing young salmon in bio-secure and environmentally friendly conditions.
Jim Gallagher, Scottish Sea Farms’ managing director, said: “We have ambitious plans for sustainably growing the volumes of salmon we produce to meet increased demand across the world for premium Scottish salmon.”
“As part of this, we have been evaluating locations around Scotland to build and develop our freshwater business, and I am delighted that we have found a site that offers an ideal location providing everything we want in terms of power supply, freshwater and connection to the sea.”
With the site purchase now finalised, Scottish Sea Farms will embark on a period of consultation with the community to develop the site in a way that also benefits the community and supports sustainable growth in the area.
The planned facility will use 90% less water than traditional freshwater sites, and will deliver significantly improved energy efficiency.
Mr Gallagher added: “This will be transformational for Scottish Sea Farms, raising our production of smolts from 5m to 11m annually, and helping us to meet the rising global demand for our premium Scottish salmon and to grow our harvest volumes and revenues sustainably.”
“It will also further increase our contribution to Scotland’s economic prosperity and the development of our coastal communities.”
Scottish Sea Farms expected to begin work on the site later this year, with the first fish reared in the new facility entering the water in 2019.
