Leading biosciences company Biomega Group (‘Biomega’), which produces high quality marine ingredients for the animal and human nutrition markets, has now received the greenlight from the Danish Ministry of Environment and Hjørring Municipality to start construction on its new biorefinery.
Located on a greenfield site, rented from the Port of Hirtshals in northern Denmark, the biorefinery is being purpose-built on land that was reclaimed from the sea during development of the harbour.
The company has partnered with NCC for the construction of the new facility. As one of the leading construction companies in the Nordic region, NCC has significant experience and expertise in the development and management of infrastructure and raw material extraction projects.
Andrew Dustan, Chief Technology Officer at Biomega, commented: “We are pleased to confirm that the preparatory groundwork for the Hirtshals biorefinery is now complete, the necessary environmental and building permits are in place and construction is now well underway. This is a major milestone in the project and has been possible due to constructive dialogue between Biomega, the Danish Ministry of Environment and Hjørring Municipality, alongside the planning work carried out by building contractor, NCC. With this, we are still on track for completion of the project before mid-2022.”
Local project manager for Biomega, Jørgen Marvig, describes the geotechnical conditions on the site: “When the port was expanded, large quantities of granite rock were placed as reefs out to sea forming the outline of the harbour. Sand and water from the seabed were then pumped into the rock basin. As water drained out, a stable sand bed was built up within the rock structure. The sand base makes site preparation a lot simpler, with no interference from rock or soil layers. Some geotechnical evaluation, site levelling and compaction was required. Fortunately, the load bearing capacity is good and works well without the need for any additional reinforcements.”
The project is part of a major investment by AMERRA Capital Management, which acquired Biomega in 2017, and Mirova Natural Capital. As such, the double-digit million EUR biorefinery is set to expand the company’s production capacity for its high value, food grade salmon proteins and oils for the premium food, petfood, health and nutrition sectors.