France is Europe’s largest market for salmon, and has one of the world’s largest maritime exclusive economic zones across the oceans.
UK startup Ocean Sovereign has partnered with quality assurance and risk management firm DNV to secure French registration for the innovative offshore fish farming vessel, Ocean Ark.
As well as boasting one of the world’s largest maritime exclusive economic zones, France is the largest market for salmon in Europe.
“To seize these opportunities, agreements have been reached with well-established French aquaculture and fishing stakeholders and will be released shortly,” said Ocean Sovereign CEO Zeyd Fassi Fehri in a press release on Tuesday.
Revolutionary
The revolutionary farming concept from the British company and its Chilean partner Ocean Arks Technology will measure 174 meters in length and 64 meters in width, with a feed storage capacity of 450 tons. Able to operate autonomously for up to 25 days and produce 5,000 tons of fish per cycle, Ocean Ark’s cruising speed ranges from 3 to 4 knots, varying according to the species being farmed.
The vessel’s low density allows it to operate in high offshore waters, drifting with natural currents and fish shoals while ensuring safety for the environment, fish, and crew.
DNV will assist Ocean Sovereign with crucial tasks like classification of the vessel, certification of marine systems, and ensuring operational integrity.
The collaboration aims to deploy Ocean Ark away from marine heatwaves, algae blooms, and storms, thereby enhancing fish welfare and increasing fish production without harming fish stocks or coastal habitats.
The company’s vision is to have a fleet of the vessels capable of producing 120,000 tons for the US market and 120,000 tons for the European market operating within five years.
Designed with a patented self-cleaning trimaran superstructure, Ocean Ark complies with Marpol, Solas, and IMO regulations, according to a release from DNV announcing the partnership.
To achieve this, DNV will work with Ocean Sovereign by setting up a regulatory framework to fulfil local requirements in alignment with rules and standards of the French authorities.
Zeyd Fassi Fehri emphasized the importance of DNV’s expertise in ensuring safe deployment of the vessels under French registration.
“Offshore fish production is based on a combination of two well-known concepts, fish farming and offshore technology, and therefore a cross-industry approach and know-how is needed,” he said.
“At Ocean Sovereign, we are happy to join forces with DNV and benefit from their knowledge gained through decades of experience in these two fields that will allow us to safely deploy the vessels. We believe that DNV’s extensive experience in offshore and fish farming will help us to play a key role in the deployment of our vessels under French Registration.”
