Salmon farmer pledges £711 million for Scottish operations

Bakkafrost, the Faroese company that owns The Scottish Salmon Company, has pledged £711m investment into the way its salmon is produced.

The five-year plan is intended to raise production by 40% without acquiring new licences.

Its site at Applecross in Wester Ross will be expanded at a cost of £49m, while there will also be a new onshore production site.

These will use recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), with renewable energy and recycling of waste.

Growth is expected to be generated through a combination of employing idle licence capacity and higher utilisation of existing licences by using large smolt (young salmon).

Much of the investment will go into improving the biological performance and cost structure of its Scottish operations.

"The business, which has underperformed the industry in the past, will strengthen all parts of the value chain," read a statement.

"A more robust framework for seawater risk mitigation combined with a shorter seawater cycle is expected to become a game changer for biological performance and result in significant sustainable growth."

The company said that the implementation of the investment plan will be transformational for its Scottish operations.

Due to lead times in construction and the long production cycle of salmon, expected profit and loss improvements are back-end loaded in the plan.

The investment plan is expected to be financed through a combination of operational cash flow and available funding.

Bakkafrost’s managing director Ian Laister said: “This investment plan will be transformational for the business as we aim to become the leading and most sustainable salmon producer in Scotland.

“Our commitment to incorporate RAS technology across all freshwater production is fundamental to delivering sustainable growth and a game changer for the business.

“Our strategy delivers true value to our stakeholders and continues and enhances our support for the rural communities in which we operate.”

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