UPGRADE FOR HB GRANDI FISHMEAL FACILITY

Upgrade for HB Grandi fishmeal facility In Vopnafjörður, Iceland, where work on the factory is progressing well .

Three of the boilers are being replaced with new ones, with this extensive project beginning a week before Christmas and scheduled for completion before 20th January.

Sveinbjörn Sigmundsson, HB Grandi’s Vopnafjörður factory manager, said: “It was time for an upgrade as these are old boilers that are being replaced, between 20 and 30 years old. The new equipment should ensure steadier production and it should also increase it and improves production reliability. It’s too early to say how it will affect power consumption, but we are hoping that it will require less electrical power.”

The new boilers have been made by Héðinn, which has supplied staff to work alongside the HB Grandi workforce and local contractors to commission the new equipment. These are not small items, and the heaviest boiler weighed in at around 20 tonnes.
Sigmundsson added: “We brought in a local carpentry firm to open the factory roof, then the old equipment was hoisted out and the new ones lifted in. We reckon that a total of 160 to 170 tonnes has been moved. As can be imagined, it’s a challenge to make everything fit in place and we have been working up to 18 metres above the floor. But good progress is being made and if the catch reports look good at the beginning of the year, we’ll speed things up if we need to.”

HB Grandi hf. is one of Iceland’s largest seafood companies. The company has a long history and extensive experience and expertise in the utilisation of natural resources and fish production, which is reflected in all its activities. The company focuses on sophisticated fishing and processing technology and continuous production development. The company produces high-quality products from the fresh wild fish caught in Icelandic waters. Respect for the environment and the marine ecosystem is the basis for all activities at HB Grandi, and every effort is made to respect the resource and operate responsible fisheries, for the benefit of future generations. HB Grandi emphasises corporate social responsibility, as it has always been the goal of the company that all its activities reflect its responsibility towards the marine resources and the community.

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