Planned $10 million finfish nursery in Geraldton has been scrapped by the State Government in latest Budget

The planned $10 million finfish nursery for Geraldton that has been in limbo since 2019, has been scrapped by the State Government. First announced in 2019 with an initial budget of $7 million, the nursery was supposed to fast-track the growth of the Mid West aquaculture industry that was developing at the time. The nursery would have supplied juvenile yellowtail kingfish to buyers and rev up development in the Mid West aquaculture development zone. The recent State Budget showed the Geraldton nursery had been moved to the completed list, with $700,000 spent on planning on the project. A State Government spokesperson said: “Since the original decision to fund the nursery, the global COVID 19 pandemic has impacted the aquaculture industry and resulted in increased development costs.” The original project was built up to support the Tasmanian processors Huon Aquaculture in establishing the yellowtail kingfish farms, and grow up to 10,000 tonnes of fish annually. Huon has since shown a lack of willingness to continue with the project, despite getting environmental approvals back in 2021 to begin operations at the Abrolhos Islands, where the 2200ha fish farm was meant to be. “Future development of a marine finfish nursery remains an objective, subject to interest and commitment by commercial producers,” said the State Government spokesperson. “There is no requirement for a nursery at Geraldton in the short term but this may be considered in the future.” The project that was supposed to create more than 1000 jobs was already in doubt when construction had been stunted after the State Government rejected two private tender proposals to begin construction in 2020. Huon Aquaculture was contacted for a comment.