China launches first deep-sea fish farm

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China completed the construction of its first deep-sea fish farming facility and delivered it in Qingdao, east China’s Shandong Province on Friday.

Click here to watch the rebroadcast of the launch of the fish farm.

The octagonal apparatus, named Shenlan 1, is the country’s first self-developed fully-submerged aquaculture facility, and will be delivered to the Yellow Sea for the cultivation of salmon.

Shenlan 1 is China’s first self-developed fully-submerged aquaculture facility. /VCG Photo

Developed by the Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Group, Shenlan 1 is 35 meters high with a circumference of 180 meters, able to accommodate 50,000 cubic meters of water. It can cultivate 300,000 salmon during a growth circle, and is expected to meet the annual output of 1,500 tons.

The facility can dive between four to 50 meters. The diving depth will be adjusted according to the water temperature to provide the fish with a suitable cultivation environment.

Breakthroughs have been made in the core technologies of the facility, including the overall design, feedstuff conveying, dead fish collection, sea and fish condition monitoring, and underwater oxygen supply.

Shenlan 1 will be used in the Yellow Sea Cold Water Mass about 130 nautical miles east of Shandong’s Rizhao city. Its application pioneers in the large-scale breeding of salmon in the world, and will largely expand the space for China’s maritime economy.

(Top image: VCG Photo)

553km