QINGDAO, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- China has launched a project to realize large-scale cultivation of salmon in the cold water mass of the Yellow Sea to cater to the growing seafood demands at Chinese markets.
The salmon farm, which will be located about 130 nautical miles off the shore of Rizhao in eastern China's Shandong Province, aims to produce 45,000 tonnes of salmon annually, said Dong Shuanglin, a professor at the Ocean University of China and the project's chief scientist.
The project, initiated by the university and two Chinese firms, involves a total investment of 4.3 billion yuan (642 million U.S. dollars) and has demarcated a cultivation area of 30 square kilometers.
It plans to erect the "Shenlan 2" salmon cage in the second half of this year, following a successful trial of salmon farming at "Shenlan 1," so far the world's largest fully-submersible fish cage.
The "Shenlan 2" cage is 80 meters tall, compared with the 35 meters of "Shenlan 1," and can accommodate 1 million fish, a large rise from its predecessor's 300,000, according to Dong.
The project also includes the construction of an onshore industrial park, R&D facilities and a fry cultivation base. The first batch of salmon from the farm is scheduled to hit the market by the end of 2020.
