Three pelagic vessels operated by Síldarvinnslan have sailed from Norðfjörður in the east of Iceland to start on the summer mackerel season.
Barði, Beitir and Börkur have been in port for some time since the blue whiting fishery came to an end. The Greenlandic vessels part-owned by Síldarvinnslan, Polar Amaroq and Polar Ammassak, have already been pair trawling for mackerel in international waters, which is where the three pelagic vessels under the Icelandic flag expect top start the season.
Polar Amaroq has been freezing catches at sea, and now that its holds are full, catches are pumped into Polar Ammassak’s tanks before the pair head back to port to discharge.
As in previous years, these vessels will all be co-operating during the mackerel season with Samherji’s Vilhelm Thorsteinsson and Margrét, with catches pumped aboard one vessel, so that the fleet takes it in turns to steam home to land, minismising fuel costs and time spent steaming. The arrangement has been highly effective, especially when fishing has been slow.
Börkur’s skipper Hjörvar Hjálmarsson is quietly optimistic for the season ahead.
‘The outlook is similar to last year and I expect we’ll head straight for international waters. We hope it’s work out as it did last year when most of the fishing to begin with was in international waters, after which there was good fishing inside the EEZ,’ he said.
‘We have to hope for the best at the start of the season,’ said Guðmundur Th. Jónsson, skipper of Samherji’s pelagic vessel Vilhelm Thorsteinsson, adding that those vessels that have been searching have been off the south-west of Iceland, but he expected to be heading for international waters.
‘It’s a day and a half’s steaming to get there,’ he said, commenting that the co-operative arrangement with the Síldarvinnslan fleet means that catches are pooled on a single vessel and landed at their freshest.
‘There’s a substantial energy saving, as this means nobody’s steaming with unused carrying capacity. This arrangement has worked well and the aim is always to maximise catch value.’
In the Westman Islands, Ísfélag’s four pelagic vessels Heimaey, Sigurður, Álsey and Suðurey are also about to head for the same fishing grounds, and a representative of the company commented that they hope for a better outcome this year than last – but added a reminder that this season is getting underway just as a polticial battle is being fought over the government’s plans to increase the levy on the industry.
Síldarvinnslan’s production manager Geir Sigurpáll Hlöðversson reports that processing facilities are ready to make a start.
‘The building filled up with people and there’s activity everywhere. During the season we work three shifts of 25 staff. So we have 75 people working in production but the workforce as a whole is around a hundred. We’re looking forward to the first landing towards the end of next week. We’re also hoping to see a longer season than last year,’ he said.
