A$755 mill land-based RAS deal in Saudi Arabia – plans 600,000 tons a year by 2030
In what is being heralded as one of the world's largest fish farm projects, the aquaculture development company Pure Salmon has signed a £420m (A$755m) deal with the Saudi government to build a huge RAS facility in Saudi Arabia.
Pure Salmon is owned by the Singapore-based equity fund 8F Asset Management Ltd and has already planned to develop a number of such projects of this type around the world, although nothing quite on the Saudi scale.
Pure Salmon claims to be one of the fastest growing Atlantic salmon companies globally. They say they are on course to build and operate multiple 10,000 tons a year and 20,000 tons a year integrated aquaculture production and processing facilities using land-based recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) technology.
The company has set its target on producing 260,000 tons of annual Atlantic salmon by 2025, with 140,000 tons pa already mapped out. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia plans to expand the local aquaculture industry to reach 600,000 tonnes per year by 2030.
Pure Salmon said the project is not only poised to meet the needs of the local market but also has the potential to be a significant exporter. The project will create hundreds of direct and indirect skilled jobs and, through Pure Salmon Academy and in partnership with local educational institutions in the KSA, will groom and train next-generation aquaculture specialists.