Bioretur

What Bioretur does

Bioretur AS is a Norwegian aquaculture services company that provides complete sludge management for the salmon farming industry. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Bergen, the firm operates a proprietary Super Heated Steam (SHS) drying technology combined with mechanical dewatering that processes fish sludge from 0.1% to over 90% dry solids in a closed-loop, oxygen-free system, producing a hygienized, storage-stable end product suitable for fertilizer or energy recovery. Its flagship commercial offering is the Bioreturavtalen, an Equipment-as-a-Service agreement that bundles equipment financing, 24/7 operation, maintenance, and sustainable sludge utilization into a fixed monthly fee, with Bioretur retaining equipment-related risk during the contract period.

The company serves the largest Norwegian aquaculture producers including Mowi, Lerøy Seafood, Grieg Seafood, Erko Seafood, and Sævareid Fiskeanlegg, and has extended its offering to salmon slaughterhouses that must comply with new BAT-AEL blood-water regulations effective December 2023, processing approximately 8 million m³ of blood water annually across the Norwegian industry. Supporting services include Bioretur Logistics for transport and documentation, regional DryHub reception facilities (Vest, Øst, Midt, Nord), FlexiTank rental storage, the Quantum digital monitoring platform, and an integrated waste-to-fertilizer and waste-to-energy ecosystem built around partnerships with Terramarine AS (fertilizer offtake for Southeast Asian agriculture) and sister company Green Gas AS (modular biogas). Go-to-market is direct enterprise field sales supplemented by the Aqua Nor trade show and a multilingual YouTube presence; the firm is led by founder and CEO Steinar Wasmuth with Tore Hofstad as board chair.

Name

Bioretur

Legal name

Bioretur AS

Website

https://bioretur.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Bioretur AS is a Norwegian aquaculture services company that delivers fish sludge treatment solutions, including proprietary Super Heated Steam drying technology and an Equipment-as-a-Service agreement, to salmon farming companies, slaughterhouses, and municipal and industrial waste operators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aquaculture Waste Management

NAICS

Other Aquaculture (112519)

SIC

Refuse Systems (4953)

akta.pro primary industry

Aquaculture Farm Services & Operations Support (net cleaning, diving, grading, harvesting) (AFAEAAAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sludge/Biosolids Handling & Treatment Facilities Construction (IMAFAGAJ)

Keywords

• Aquaculture waste management
• Fish sludge treatment
• Industrial drying systems
• Waste-to-resource processing
• Biogas energy solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Nesttun

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Bioreturavtalen (Service Agreement): Monthly subscription fee covering equipment financing, 24/7 operation, maintenance, and sustainable sludge handling. Customers pay a fixed monthly sum with all costs included. Bioretur assumes all equipment-related risks during the contract period.
2. Equipment Sales: Customers can purchase the sludge treatment equipment outright and operate it themselves or sign a service agreement. Standard warranty terms apply.
3. Logistics Services: Bioretur Logistics handles planning, coordination, and transportation of sludge and wet organic residual streams. Includes fixed or flexible pickup of wet/dry sludge, blood water, and ensilage with full documentation and traceability.
4. Biogass Systems (via Green Gas AS): Modular biogas plant solutions through sister company Green Gas AS, converting organic waste including fish sludge into energy.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bioretur provides complete fish sludge management solutions for the aquaculture industry through an Equipment-as-a-Service subscription model called Bioreturavtalen, which covers equipment financing, 24/7 operation, maintenance, and sustainable sludge handling for a fixed monthly fee. The company's proprietary SHS (Super Heated Steam) drying technology processes fish sludge from 0.1% to over 90% dry solids content in a closed-loop oxygen-free environment, serving land-based RAS facilities, sea-based aquaculture operations, and salmon slaughterhouses in Norway and internationally.

Product overview

Bioretur offers a comprehensive portfolio of sludge treatment products and services for aquaculture and industrial applications. The core offering is the Bioreturavtalen (Bioretur Agreement), an Equipment-as-a-Service model that provides complete sludge management including equipment, 24/7 operation, maintenance, and sustainable utilization for a fixed monthly fee. The technology foundation is Bioretur's proprietary SHS (Super Heated Steam) drying technology, which processes fish sludge from 0.1% to over 90% dry solids in a closed, fire-safe system. The product line includes: Komplett slambehandling (complete treatment systems), Avvanning (mechanical dewatering), Tørking (drying with SHS), Biogass solutions (via sister company Green Gas AS), and Behandling av blodvann (blood water treatment in partnership with Downstream Marine and M Vest Water). Supporting services include Bioretur Logistics for transport and documentation, DryHub regional processing facilities, FlexiTank rental storage, and Quantum - a digital customer portal providing real-time monitoring dashboards for sludge volumes, nutrients, energy use, and CO2 emissions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bioreturavtalen: Equipment as a Service model where Bioretur provides sludge treatment equipment, operation, maintenance, and sustainable sludge management for a fixed monthly fee.
• Quantum
• Bioretur Logistics
• DryHub
• FlexiTank

Products and services

• Bioreturavtalen (Bioretur Agreement) A comprehensive Equipment-as-a-Service subscription agreement providing complete sludge management including equipment financing, 24/7 operation, maintenance, and sustainable sludge utilization for a fixed monthly fee. Designed for land-based aquaculture operators, fish slaughterhouses, and other producers of wet organic waste streams.
• SHS Technology (Super Heated Steam Drying Equipment) Bioretur's proprietary drying technology using superheated steam as an energy carrier in an oxygen-free environment. The closed-loop system achieves fire and explosion safety, high drying capacity, hygienization, heat recovery, and compact footprint. Customers can purchase the equipment outright or include it in a Bioreturavtalen.
• Komplett slambehandling (Complete Sludge Treatment Systems) Complete modular sludge treatment systems combining mechanical dewatering and drying into one integrated system, processing fish sludge from 0.1% to over 90% dry solids content. Includes reception, mechanical dewatering, drying, heat recovery, hygienization, and intermediate storage.
• Behandling av blodvann (Blood Water Treatment) Complete solution for blood water treatment from salmon slaughterhouses, developed in partnership with Downstream Marine AS (disinfection) and M Vest Water AS (purification), meeting BAT-AEL requirements effective December 2023. Handles approximately 8 million m³ of blood water annually across Norwegian salmon slaughterhouses.
• Bioretur Logistics Professional transport and logistics services for sludge, blood water, ensilage, and dead fish from aquaculture sites to approved reception facilities with full documentation and traceability. Launched in 2025 as part of the company's expansion to cover the entire sludge management value chain.
• Quantum (Customer Data Platform) Digital data platform providing customers with real-time and historical dashboards for monitoring sludge volumes, nutrient content, energy consumption, CO2 emissions, and feed-sludge ratios across facilities. Provides full traceability and documentation of sludge handling operations.
• DryHub (Regional Reception Facilities) Regional reception and processing facilities for organic by-products and residual materials, offering receiving, weighing, drying, stabilization, documentation, and distribution to fertilizer or energy industries. Four planned locations across Norway.
• FlexiTank Rental storage tanks for sludge, blood water, and ensilage, delivered mounted on framework or container, exchangeable when full. Provides flexible on-site storage capacity for aquaculture facilities.
• Biogass for fiskeoppdrett (Biogas Systems via Green Gas AS) Modular biogas plant solutions delivered through sister company Green Gas AS, converting organic waste including fish sludge into energy using natural principles. Aligned with Green Gas vision of 'No Waste Just Energy'.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reduces transport volumes by 70-90% through drying to 90%+ dry solids
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Terramarine ASflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2022Long-term agreement where Terramarine uses dried fish sludge powder as raw material for a series of fertilizer products delivered to agriculture in Southeast Asia. Products are specially designed for various tropical crops with agronomists and specialists in Ho Chi Minh City providing extensive R&D and customer advisory services.
• Green Gas AScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company of Bioretur that delivers modular biogas plants using nature's own principles to convert organic waste including fish sludge into energy. Aligned with Green Gas vision of 'No Waste Just Energy' with energy produced locally where raw materials are found.
• Downstream Marine AScoreTechnology or IntegrationSince 2003, Downstream Marine has delivered reliable blood water disinfection technology preferred by all major Norwegian salmon slaughterhouses. Their solution handles 70% of total market discharge, consisting of pre-filtration, flotation, and disinfection using electrolyzed seawater solution with secure external VPN control.
• M Vest Water AScoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides effective blood water treatment with environmentally friendly products aligned with the latest BAT-AEL regulations for the industry. The solution is economically attractive with low chemical consumption, simple to implement and manage, requires no pH adjustment, and can be remotely controlled and monitored via VPN.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Cambi: Norwegian provider of thermal hydrolysis and sludge treatment solutions for biosolids and organic waste. Highly comparable to Bioretur because both use thermal processes to treat wet organic waste streams and serve municipal and industrial customers including aquaculture-adjacent sectors.
• Haarslev: Global supplier of drying and rendering equipment for animal by-products and sludge. Comparable to Bioretur's SHS drying systems because both convert wet organic residues into dry, stable products with downstream fertilizer/feed applications.

Broad incumbents

• Andritz: Global industrial group with separation, drying, and wastewater treatment equipment used across food, aquaculture, and sludge processing. Comparable to Bioretur as a much larger potential competitor/incumbent in aquaculture sludge dewatering and drying equipment.
• GEA Group: Large industrial equipment manufacturer serving food processing, dairy, and aquaculture with separators, dryers, and wastewater solutions. Comparable to Bioretur as a broad incumbent whose drying/separation portfolio overlaps with Bioretur's SHS sludge treatment systems.
• Veolia: Global water and waste management services giant with biosolids treatment operations. Comparable to Bioretur because Veolia's sludge management and biogas operations could enter Norwegian aquaculture waste either as competitor or acquirer of specialized players like Bioretur.
• Suez: International water and waste services company with biosolids and circular economy solutions. Comparable to Bioretur as a broad incumbent that could leverage its municipal sludge expertise to enter aquaculture waste treatment, particularly in Norway's regulated market.

Emerging players

• AquaBounty Technologies: Land-based aquaculture technology company focused on Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS). Comparable to Bioretur because its customers (RAS operators) are the primary buyer segment for Bioretur's sludge management services, though AquaBounty is upstream rather than a service vendor.
• Innovasea: Aquaculture technology provider offering RAS systems, fish farming sensors, and aquatic resource management. Comparable to Bioretur as a technology partner ecosystem for the same RAS and aquaculture customers, though Innovasea focuses on production rather than waste handling.

Regional players

• Aqua Nor exhibitor ecosystem (e.g., Sterner AS): Norwegian water and process treatment supplier for aquaculture and municipal clients. Comparable to Bioretur as a regional Norwegian water treatment peer presenting at Aqua Nor, with overlapping competencies in aquaculture process water.

Others

• BioMar: Global aquaculture feed manufacturer with sustainability-focused operations. Comparable to Bioretur as an enabling/ecosystem partner for the same Norwegian salmon producers, though BioMar's upstream feed focus is not directly competitive with sludge treatment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/bioretur
• Instagraminstagram.com/bioretur

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bioretur