July 29, 2011

Aquaculture producer AgriMarine Holdings Inc announced that it has established AgriMarine Norway AS (AgriNor) as the exclusive sales agent of its solid-wall containment technology in Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, the UK, Ireland, Iceland and Russia.

AgriNor is 50% owned by AgriMarine, with the remaining 50% owned by ZED International Holdings, a Canadian company, and Midos AS, a Norwegian company, with 25% each respectively.

AgriNor's goals are to identify suitable locations in the Territories for the use of AgriMarine's technology, to establish concessions on those locations, and to place the company's floating containment systems with suitable purchasers.

In addition to the technology license, AgriMarine will provide a starting capital injection of US$250,000 over the next four months, with subsequent funding for the initial concessions to be sourced by Midos and ZED.

Norway is the largest producer of Atlantic salmon in the world, recording sales of 784,000 tonnes valued at NOK31.4 billion (US$5.7 billion) in 2010. Although seafood is Norway's third largest export market, the industry is threatened by the negative environmental impacts associated with fish farming in open net cages.

According to AgriMarine, the company's solid-wall containment technology reduces local pollution of the receiving water systems through the capture of waste feed/feces and facilitates improved feed conversions; mitigates environmental effects on wild fish through the prevention of escapes and avoids proximal contaminations such as marine parasites.

AgriNor believes that as AgriMarine's solid-wall containment technology gains acceptance in Norway, that all other salmon producing areas such as Chile (the second largest producer of salmon in the world), Scotland, Canada and the Faroe Islands will follow suit.