Singapore-based investment firm 8F Asset Management has successfully closed an investment fund which it said finalizes the funding it needs to complete a land-based salmon recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) in Japan. 

The company announced in addition to the first close of its third aquaculture fund, it secured JPY 33 billion (USD 209 million, EUR 201 million) from a syndicate of Japanese banks, led by Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. 8F said the additional funding will cover all the capital costs it needs to commence construction and operations of its Soul of Japan land-based salmon RAS facility in Tsu City, Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Funding for its Japan-based facility also came through the successful close of 8F’s third aquaculture fund – 8F Aquaculture Fund Japan – with the majority of the equity of the fund directed toward the new facility in Japan. 

“This successful close is another significant milestone toward our goal of supplying the world with clean, healthy, locally produced protein,” 8F and Pure Salmon Chairman and Founder Stephane Farouze said. “The strong support from our investors, including the addition of new Japanese investors, underscores the growing need for innovative solutions to improve the sustainability of our food systems and meet the rising protein demand in Japan.”

Soul of Japan said the Atlantic salmon-farming facility will have an annual production target of 10,000 metric tons (MT) on its 13.7-hectare site. 

“The fully vertically integrated, state-of-the-art farming and processing facility will produce high-quality, fresh, antibiotic- and vaccine-free Atlantic salmon for human consumption, as well as pet nutrition made from salmon offcuts,” Pure Salmon said.

Pure Salmon previously announced plans to build a series of RAS farms around the world, with a goal of growing up to 260,000 metric tons (MT) of salmon globally across dozens of facilities, each farming 10,000 to 20,000 salmon. The company had secured USD 358.8 million (then EUR 322.6 million) in 2020 for building RAS facilities in Poland, Japan, France, and the U.S.

At the time, the company said it was planning to complete construction on its Japanese facility by late 2021, with the first harvest planned for 2023. That timeline has since been pushed back, and the company said it expects to have its first harvest in mid-2027.

The company also broke ground on a Virginia, U.S.A-based facility in 2021 and said it wanted to finish the project by 2023, but delays hampered activity on the project until May 2024.

Pure Salmon has also secured investments for expanding its facilities into China and Southeast Asia, with the goal of establishing a 10,000-MT salmon RAS in Brunei.

Pure Salmon and 8F Asset Management announced in August 2021 that it was moving Pure Salmon’s global head office to Abu Dhabi. 8F Asset Management is still headquartered in Singapore and has group offices in Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, London, and Frankfurt.

Source - https://www.seafoodsource.com