After 13 years of research Niels Stolt Nielsen, company manager for Stolt Sea Farm, decided that Cadiz met all the necessary qualities for sole and turbot hatchery and production, reports Gippsland Aquaculture Industry Network.
The Soleaqua farm implementation project was introduced together with the director of the firm in Spain, Pablo Garcia, and the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Clara Aguilera.
Ms Aguilera stated how the project would position the province of Cádiz as a world leader in sustainable aquaculture.
With sole production starting on the 20- hectare farm of Retin, recently granted by the Ministry of Defence to Barbate (Cádiz), the plan also involves an initial investment of EUR 50 million for the creation of the new farms in Barbate and Santa Maria Port. Around 120 people will be employed directly and a further 200 indirectly.
The first step of the project is creating a farm in the center of Barbate where it is estimated to produce around 1,000 tonnes of sole, with an estimated budget of EUR 29.5 million. Next is the production of the alevin hatchery to be built in Santa Maria Port, which will produce up to 400 tonnes of sole.
Stolt Sea Farm plans to raise and fatten the sole on the premises of the Port Authority of Santa Maria Port, where the fish will remain until reaching their minimum weight for the sale, about 200 grams.
Soleaqua will have a production capacity of about 1,400 tonnes of sole annually and 15 million of alevins.
At present, aquaculture occupies over 85 square kilometers in Andalusia, along the 1,100 kilometers of coastline.
The sector currently generates approximately EUR 50 million per year, EUR 9 million in Cadiz, and gathers 112 marine aquaculture companies that directly employ nearly 700 people.
Cadiz Will Boast The Largest Sole Farm InEurope
SPAIN - The Norwegian companyStolt Sea Farmplans to set up the largest European sole production and hatchery farm in Barbate and Santa Mara Port, Cadiz.
