'Mountain salmon' plans for Mealista

The proposed location is at Mealista in the Uig area of the island. The chief executive of Norwegian Mountain Salmon said this week that there has been contact with the local authority and the privately-owned crofting estate over the past year.

Mealista is uninhabited but is under crofting tenure. Until this week there was no local awareness of a proposed £581 million development which could create up to 200 jobs.

Information has emerged through what appears to be a presentation made to potential investors last October which envisages 90,000 tonnes of salmon being produced each year and a “market leading freshness of fish”.

This would increase Scottish farmed salmon production by around 40 per cent. The project, which is similar to one the company is developing on the island of Utsira in Norway, envisages 224 fish tanks, each 22 metres wide, linked to seawater by a network of pipes.

Acccording to the presentation, the benefits of “mountain salmon” include no sea lice, no fish escapes, separate biological zones, effective treatment systems and optimal water quality, as well as low visual intrusion.

Speaking to the Gazette on Wednesday, chief executive Bård Hjelmen said the project was at a “very early stage” and that they are also considering a site in Shetland.

Mr Hjelmen said that their development in Norway which is going through its planning stages has been based on “very tight co-operation with local inhabitants” and added: “You need that kind of co-operation to establish such a facility”.

He said that while the Mealista location presents challenges, they had “warmed to it” in recent months and were encouraged to look for ways to make the project work. “It is a very good location with really good inlet water”, he said.

One of the issues on which they are “looking for solutions” with other Norwegian companies is smolts availability.

Duncan Macinnes, secretary of the Western Isles Fishermen’s Association and Depute Leader of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, said the project would be “transformational” and a huge boost to the island economy.

He said that the salmon farming industry is currently looking at how to expand to meet world-wide demand but at the same time “battling high mortality rates which are running at 22 per cent”.

Mr MacInnes added: “We have been asking them for some time to look at land-based solutions rather than going into deeper waters which are also good fishing grounds”.

Mr Hjelmen said that they would continue to seek advice on their proposal with a view to making a decision about location by the summer.