NVE has given Mowi ASA two fees totaling NOK 16.3 million. The reason is that they have illegally supplied themselves with too much water from two watercourses, a river in Kinn municipality in Western Norway and a lake in Orkland in Trøndelag. – It is very serious and very unfortunate when Mowi does not follow the requirements given in licenses. These are requirements that have been created to take care of Ålmenta’s interests, says Mari Hegg Gundersen who is section manager in NVE. NVE thinks Mowi has made a lot of money from taking too much water from the watercourse, because it has made it possible to increase the number of fish in the facility. Mowi is the world’s largest fish farming company with a billion profit annually. The company says they will appeal the penalty. Illegal abstraction of water In December 2011, a license was granted to use water from the Haukå watercourse in Kinn municipality, for use in hatchery production. To take care of wild fish in the watercourse, Mowi was not allowed to supply himself with more water than 20 cubic meters per minute. NVE has revealed that Mowi has had a higher average water withdrawal than they are allowed to. Mowi has also violated the requirement to register water abstraction and minimum water flow in large parts of the same period, NVE says. The fee for the illegal water abstraction is set at NOK 11 million. Mowi’s hatchery at Haukå in Kinn municipality. Photo: Ottar Starheim / news Got no to drain water but did it In the winter of 2021 it was dry in Trøndelag. In February of that year, Mowi applied for a permit to lower Slørdalsvatnet in Orkland municipality, under the lowest legal water level. NVE rejected the application for consideration of landscape, fish and mussels. Despite the refusal, they continued to drain water from Slørdalsvatnet. For 11 days, the water was below the lowest legal water level. This is what NVE Mowi thinks was done to keep juvenile fish alive. NVE has estimated the number to be 800,000 salmon fry. Fortenesta has calculated them to be NOK 5 million, so they set the fee at NOK 5.3 million. – A hatchery must plan for dry years to come. There must also be reserve water sources that secure water during droughts. We think Mowi could have avoided the situation by taking into account the drought, says Gundersen in NVE. Mowi will complain Mowi says to news that they will complain about the million fee. – We have just received the decision. We see that NVE has taken into account individual elements in our comments in the case handling, but we are uncooperative in the decisions and will appeal this, says communications manager Eivind Nævdal-Bolstad. – People will quickly be disappointed with Mowi if they take too much water from watercourses to earn extra money, what do you think dives look like? – It is important to emphasize that we are uncooperative in the decisions. We must respond well to our complaint, and make sure that we get the decision reversed, says Nævdal-Bolstad. The company will not comment further. Also in 2014, the company received debts, at that time for overproduction at the plant at Haukå in Kinn. Then the police would fine the company two million kroner, and make a confiscation of 10 million kroner. Mowi won that time in the district court.
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Farming giant receives a million fee after having “dried up” watercourses – news Vestland
