Seafarms $1.5 billion NT prawn project covers off on another milestone

SEAFARMS’ billion-dollar prawn aquaculture project has covered off on another milestone with early works to build Project Sea Dragon’s core breeding centre and bloodstock

Seafarms’ $1.5b Project Sea Dragon will produce black tiger prawns, mainly for the Asian export market

SEAFARMS’ billion-dollar prawn aquaculture project has covered off on another milestone with early works to build Project Sea Dragon’s core breeding centre and bloodstock maturation facility at Bynoe Harbour near Darwin starting.

Seafarms said the works required to upgrade Project Sea Dragon’s founder stock centre at Exmouth in Western Australia are also well advanced, with the first of three infrastructure facilities nearing completion.

The founder stock centre is a critical part of the biosecurity strategy of the world‐class project.

Project Sea Dragon is a staged $1.5 billion development over seven years to create 10,000ha of ponds that will produce 100,000 tonnes of black tiger prawns, mainly for the Asian export market.

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It involves five sites in the Northern Territory and Western Australia and is expected to create 1600 jobs in Northern Australia.

The bloodstock maturation centre, a core breeding centre and commercial hatcheries are central to Seafarms’ breeding program.

Prawns will be moved from the founder stock centre in Exmouth to the commercial breeding facilities at Bynoe Harbour.

Local Darwin contractors have undertaken more than 99 per cent of site works to date employing 25 people including four indigenous people. Seafarms says the works remain on time and on budget.

It said Bynoe breeding facilities will incorporate world-leading research by using genetic and phenotypic data to instigate highly efficient multi‐trait selective breeding programs.

The goal is to be able to identify the genetic performance of a prawn using a DNA test.

This research forms part of Seafarms’ co-investment involvement in the estimated $9 million ARC Research Hub for Advanced Prawn Breeding (ARC) program initiated in 2014.

Other ARC partners include the University of Sydney, CSIRO and the Australian Genome Research Facility.

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The ARC program brings together‐leading animal geneticists, research and service providers and Seafarms to gather the genomic resources, commercial phenotypic data, and apply cutting‐edge genetic and genomic selection methodologies.

Access to and land tenure for the Bynoe Harbour breeding facilities form part of the Project Agreement with the Northern Territory Government.

The NT Government has already started and/or completed the development of important public infrastructure that will assist the logistics for these facilities, in particular, Gunn Point Rd.