At this land-based research station at Sunndalsøra with fresh water, seawater and recirculated water, we can carry out biological and technological experiments along the complete aquaculture value chain.

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The research station lies in central Norway, at the heart of Norwegian salmon production. Diversity is the station’s forte – many tools for particular problems have been developed at the station during the past 40 years and more.

The station has research facilities for nutrition, formulated feeds, physiology, breeding, recirculation, radiography and metabolism studies. The station also has its own laboratory.

 We offer:

  • Experiments in facilities with and without water recirculation, in fresh water, seawater and brackish water
  • Testing of feed and raw materials
  • Research into the determinants of robustness in farmed fish, using swimming tunnels and respiration chambers
  • Radiography to investigate the development of deformities
  • Storage and testing of genetic material

The principal activity is research in the following fields:

  • Nutrition, feed and feeding
  • Breeding and genetics
  • New species
  • Quality
  • Preventative health measures
  • Production technology and the environment

The Nofima Centre for Recirculation in Aquaculture (NCRA) is also located at the research station. This centre was built in 2010 and is suitable for testing technology and studying farmed fish in the aquaculture systems of the future.

Research is currently carried out in six halls with a total floor area of 6,500 m2. The centre has 22 biocontainment departments with just over 1,000 tanks, and 600 hatcheries of various sizes. The main areas of research at the station concentrate on salmon, and it is licensed to work also with trout, halibut, cod, wrasse and lumpfish. The water temperature is controlled with heat pumps, exchangers, coolers and district heating.

The research station was built in 1971, and was the first aquaculture research station in Norway. Today, approximately 50 Nofima employees work there.

Watch a film

Nofima’s research station in aquaculture at Sunndalsøra is a modern and flexible 50-year-old in 2021.

With our research infrastructure and the expertise of our employees, we can help the aquaculture industry solve the challenges of the future.

Questions and enquiries

Adress

Sjølsengvegen 22
NO-6600 Sunndalsøra