The group was in Trondheim in connection with the major Tekmar conference, which is held every year by SINTEF Fisheries and Aquaculture. MARINTEK vice-president Atle Minsaas, gave one of the opening speeches at the conference.
The minister and her colleagues were first introduced to the work of MARINTEK, after which Harald Ellingsen, director of NTNU's Department of Marine Technology, spoke about the training offered by NTNU to students from all over the world. Bård Wathne Tveiten, MARINTEK's vicepresident for new marine industries, talked about our R&D activities in aquaculture, notably the testing of SalMar's high-seas fish-cages, new net-pens for Aqualine and the development of the Blue Revolution Centre, in collaboration with the Norwegian University of Lfe Sciences at Ås, and Marine Harvest AS.
The positive and engaged minister also heard about a range of R&D project that MARINTEK and the rest of SINTEF are involved in. Atle Misaas, who is also Ocean Space Centre project manager, offered some glimpses of MARINTEK's efforts regarding this future knowledge centre, before the guests were shown around MARINTEK's advanced laboratories. Aspaker was the eighth minister (out of 18) in Erna Solberg's government to visit MARINTEK in the course of the past few years.
