Norwegian salmon farmer Mowi's Scotland division will cease operations at Loch Arkaig in April, ending more than three decades of aquaculture at one of its oldest freshwater sites in the Scottish Highlands.

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The closure comes after unsuccessful negotiations to extend the site's lease, though the company emphasized its environmental track record at the location. Mowi said it has accumulated extensive scientific evidence demonstrating that its salmon farming operations had "no detrimental impact" on the loch's environment.

To offset the closure, Mowi is shifting operations to Loch Awe, where it has acquired two former trout farming sites at Tervine and Braevallich.

The company plans to invest heavily in modernizing these facilities, including installing new 60-meter circumference pens and upgraded feed systems.

Lock Arkaig, Scotland. Credit: Martin_Davis / Shutterstock

"We aim to produce a combined 5 million fish annually at the new sites," a company spokesperson said. The facilities will maintain the company's practice of stocking large vaccinated parr, with plans to produce smolts averaging 250 grams for transfer to Loch Etive.

No jobs will be lost in the transition -- the company plans to retain all staff members, with approximately 19 people expected to work at the Loch Awe facilities.

"This will be a challenging venture moving from trout to salmon production, which is why maintaining our experienced workforce is essential," the company said.

The announcement comes as Mowi Scotland achieved its highest-ever freshwater production in 2024, with 22.5m smolts deployed to sea farms, the company said.

The record production was accompanied by the lowest biological feed conversion ratio of 0.98, marking a continued improvement trend over the past three years.