Dutch fish farmer Kingfish Co. said it will continue planning for construction of a land-based aquaculture operation in Jonesport now that it’s won a court victory in Maine affirming the state permits for the site.
“Our construction timeline for the Jonesport facility was, unfortunately, significantly delayed by several years due to the multiple appeals by opponents,” said Vincent Erenst, CEO of Kingfish. “Now, with the appeals behind us, the project timeline will be determined by current economic and financial conditions, which we are assessing at this time.”
The company produces yellowtail kingfish at its Kingfish Zeeland facility in the Netherlands. Yellowtail is considered a versatile fish species that’s well-known in Italian and Asian fusion cuisines.
The proposal to build a plant in Jonesport was introduced in 2019 and the permitting process was completed during the pandemic.
The permit for the Maine facility was issued by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in 2021, to build a 50,000-square-foot recirculating aquaculture system facility in a phased build-out.
Since then, opposition groups — Roque Island Gardner Homestead Corp. and Eastern Maine Conservation Initiative — filed appeals with state and local planning boards and the Maine Board of Environmental Protection. The appeals were denied each time.
The latest appeal was denied by the state’s Supreme Judicial Court. The appeal contested a combined Site Location of Development Act and Natural Resources Protection Act state permit.
Kingfish Maine remains fully permitted with all required local, state and federal permits. Once completed, the Jonesport facility is expected to produce 8,500 metric tons of yellowtail.
In 2022, the company harvested its first batch of yellowtail while operating on a small scale under the name Kingfish Maine at the University of Maine’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research, an aquaculture research and development facility in Franklin, with distribution to a number of restaurants in major cities such as Boston and New York.
The cost estimate in 2023 to build the project was $110 million. There is no revised estimate yet, nor a projected groundbreaking date, a spokesperson told Mainebiz.
The U.S. imports more than 85% of all seafood, said Erenst.
“When completed, our Jonesport facility will provide local and U.S. production of our high quality and high-value yellowtail kingfish,” he said.
Annual production capacity at its Kingfish Zeeland facility in the Netherlands is 4,000 tons. Production is based on recirculating aquaculture systems operating on renewable electricity and seawater.