Offshore Aquaculture: Maccaferri participates in a groundbreaking R&D project with major Australian and Singaporean universities and research centres

The lack of available nearshore production sites in heavily utilized coastal zones is pushing fish farm operators worldwide to move offshore. 

Moving to open ocean waters not only contributes to solving the problems of increasing competition for space in nearshore waters, community opposition to coastal farming developments and conflict with other usages, but also is great for fish health and welfare, and leads to a lower impact on the ocean environment than shore-adjacent farms, thus promoting the development of a fully sustainable aquaculture industry. 

In an era marked by escalating concerns over climate change and sustainability, the pivotal role of oceans in the global equation cannot be emphasized enough. Implementing sustainable ocean management practices holds the potential to drastically increase food production by up to six times and amplify renewable energy generation by an astonishing 40-fold compared to present levels. Delivering on this ambition requires all players, industries, and governments to better understand what they have now, while looking further offshore to establish new sustainable business models. 

Against this backdrop, Maccaferri has been selected as an industry partner for a groundbreaking R&D Offshore Aquaculture project in the Southern Hemisphere. The project aims to conceptualize, optimize the design, and conduct model testing of an innovative submersible offshore fish pen model known as ‘SeaFisher’.  

The 2 year-long project, commissioned by the Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre, an independent not-for-profit company established in July 2019 under the Australian Government’s CRC Program, brings together experts in aquaculture, maritime engineering, environmental assessment from some of the main Australian and Singaporean universities and research centres, such as The University of Queensland, Griffith University, the University of Tasmania, the National University of Singapore and the Technology Centre for Offshore and Marine, Singapore. 

After the successful completion of its conceptual ‘Phase 1’, the project now transitions into ‘Phase 2’ that focuses on detailed engineering to develop a cost-effective pen for extending fish farming into deeper, cooler open ocean waters. This phase entails the design of an assembly comprising 12 cubical modular cages, arranged in pairs for convenient access to monitoring, feeding, and harvesting of the fish stock. 

Indeed, Maccaferri will provide industry advice on the design of the containment nets based on its Kikkonet technology, as well as net samples for structural tests, as the ‘Phase 2’ of the project will involve scale-model testing before full-size prototypes are constructed. 

Whilst moving to deeper offshore waters is critical for the development of sustainable aquaculture, the harsh weather conditions prevalent in these remote regions pose new challenges for the system design. The threat of large ocean waves during storms looms large, potentially tearing flimsy cages apart. Addressing this threat, ‘SeaFisher’ is ingeniously designed with a lightweight yet robust structure, integrating advanced technology for submersion during stormy weather. Once the danger subsides, it resurfaces, epitomizing a cost-effective and secure cage technology tailored for offshore farming. 

Maccaferri’s involvement in the project will give Kikkonet solution an extremely high visibility in the Aquaculture market, given the increasing demand for more sea space and an overall better water quality. At the same time, the company would be able to shed a light and share knowledge of new state-of-the-art solution that can raise awareness on the most pressing challenges related to sustainability, Green&Blue economy, and food security.