For international seafood and aquaculture companies, U.S. market access increasingly depends on where production happens, not only what gets shipped. This 40.47-acre permitted coastal site in Gouldsboro, Maine offers a point of entry into U.S. production, with active transferable permits and deeded seawater easements already in place.
The United States imports the substantial majority of the seafood it consumes. Section 301 tariffs remain in force on Chinese-processed seafood, and broader tariff regimes have raised landed costs from multiple exporting nations. As of January 1, 2026, the Marine Mammal Protection Act import rule bars seafood from foreign fisheries that don't meet U.S. comparability standards. Production capacity located inside the United States is insulated from tariff exposure, import-rule changes, and cross-ocean logistics risk.
Active, transferable permits from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, Maine Department of Marine Resources, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — the last in its third renewal review. For an operator unfamiliar with U.S. coastal permitting, the Permits page details what each permit covers, its transferability, and why obtaining equivalent approvals from scratch typically takes years.
Deeded right-of-way easements for seawater intake and discharge to Prospect Harbor, with intake access at approximately 50-foot depth. The 40.47-acre site is subdivided into four lots with more than 65,000 square feet of building area. A 1 MW solar array has been quoted for the site ($3.0M installed, plus an estimated $250,000 for interconnection) — engineered, not yet built. See the Power & Solar page for output estimates and payback analysis.
Bill Keleher, President of Kennebec River Biosciences, supports Palom on this project and brings established community relationships in Gouldsboro that can help an incoming operator entering the U.S. market for the first time.
Gouldsboro's ordinance currently limits finfish production at this site to 500 metric tons annually (exact ordinance units to be confirmed with the Town). State and federal permits already support up to 1,000 metric tons of salmonid production — reaching that level needs only Town of Gouldsboro approval, not new state or federal permitting. First-phase uses at this scale could include broodstock and genetics programs, hatchery and smolt production, or a U.S. operational headquarters, ahead of any conversation about further expansion.
All buildings require extensive renovation, including roof replacement. Seawater inlet and outlet infrastructure has not yet been constructed; preliminary estimate is approximately $1.5 million. The deeded easements that will carry it are already in place. We describe the site this way deliberately — international buyers doing diligence from a distance should be able to trust what's on this page without a site visit to confirm it.
© 2026 Palom Aquaculture LLC. Information provided for informational purposes only; does not constitute an offering or solicitation. A formal Confidential Information Memorandum is available to qualified parties upon NDA execution.