This surprising discovery was revealed by DNB analyst Tone Bjørnstad Hanstad at this week's Tekset conference in Trondheim, following the company's analysis of some of the largest land-based salmon sites around the world, which found that there has been an enormous development in the area.

"We are surprised," Hanstad said, "and the main findings show that these systems have evolved much further than we expected, both technologically and in terms of the number of projects."

She said that they have identified 20-25 projects around the world that will have the capacity to achieve a combined production of 150,000 tonnes.

"Which projects will be successful we do not yet know," emphasized Hanstad, although she added that the technology used in land-based facilities is developing very fast.

She also pointed out that the "great demand" for salmon, should help ensure that land-based production becomes economically viable in time.

"Demand has increased, as have sea-based production costs in recent years, making land-based systems more competitive," concludes Hanstad.

See the presentation here