Landing lands Nofima deal

NETHERLANDS-based engineering business Landing Aquaculture BV has agreed a deal with leading Norwegian research institute Nofima to supply 20 fully automated RAS units.

The experimental RAS (recirculating aquaculture system) units will be deployed at Nofima’s research centre in Sunndalsøra, Norway. Nofima will use the systems to carry out cutting-edge research into land-based aquaculture.

Each experimental RAS unit is designed to hold up to 60kg/m3 fish under very strict water quality standards including a maximal dissolved CO2 concentration of 10 mg/L. Every unit has a 60-micron drum filter unit, twostage MBBR, full-flow degassing, low head oxygen cone and a temperature control system. Water quality and flow will be constantly monitored and controlled by oxygen, pH, temperature, water level and water flow sensors.

The fish tanks can be operated as single drain tanks or Cornell dual drain tanks at varying water levels. This flexibility allows for experimentation with salmon in a variety of live stages.

For Landing Aquaculture BV, this will be one of the biggest RAS supply contracts so far. Co-founder and managing director Rob van de

Ven said: “This project will show that Landing Aquaculture not only has a strong engineering foundation, but that it has also matured as a company with manufacturing capabilities to handle turnkey projects of this size”.

Co-founder and innovation director at Landing, Carlos Espinal, said he sees this as the perfect opportunity to show how the RAS technology has matured over the last decade. He added: “We [Landing Aquaculture] take pride in working at the cutting edge of RAS. To do this, it is essential to remain both creative and technically correct. This project showcases how design can meet operational demands if your engineering knowledge is robust.”