Longliner Anna EA-305, operated until recently by Icelandic fishing company Útgerðarfélag Akureyringa, has been acquired by Canadian owners Arctic Alliance Fisheries, and renamed Kiviuq 1.
The longliner is expected to stay in Iceland into the summer as Slippurinn Akureyri has been contracted to outfit it for fishing black halibut in Canadian Arctic water, installing a new catch handling deck and fishing gear handling areas, as well as carrying out maintenance.
‘AFA is very excited to take Kiviuq 1 fishing and try the new factory that Slippurinn produced. We are very pleased with the expertise, excellent quality, and co-operation of the Slippurinn staff. The new factory will demonstrate the highest quality fish handling and processing,’ said Keith Coady, director of operations at Arctic Alliance Fisheries.
The catch handling deck has been designed by the yard’s tech team to provide optimum performance in bleeding and washing fish, minimising excess weight, and increasing efficiency during packing and discharging.
‘Slippurinn Akureyri is in the unique position of being able to offer complete solutions for fishing companies, which consists of general maintenance services and design/upgrade and construction of a working deck – all in one place. This has great potential and considerable efficiency for our customers,’ said DNG’s production equipment division manager Magnús Blöndal.
‘The collaboration with the fishing company in the design process was excellent and was informative for Slippurinn Akureyri, as the challenges in their local fishing grounds are different from what we are used to,’ commented project manager Ásthór Sigurgeirsson.
‘For example, all offal is collected from the halibut, but this is done so that whales are less attracted to the line. The company also chose an electrically powered longline setup from Mustad to reduce vessel noise. It’s always good to work with companies that are ready to do new things and look towards the future.’
