The first of a trio of new trawler/seiner netters for Boulogne has started fishing. The second is on the way in September and a third new trawler will make its appearance before the end of 2017 – and there are more to come.
Rose de Cascia, built for Boulogne skipper José Leprêtre, has started fishing from Boulogne and has made its first landings. The new 19.20 metre vessel was completed at the Padmos yard in Stellendam on a hull built at MIM in Dieppe.
The Scopale venture is a joint effort by Boulogne PO CME, Scapêche, Pêcheurs d’Olape and the Le Garrec fishing company, set up specifically to keep fishing in Boulgone.
According to CME’s Éric Gosselin, a company was set up to buy trawlers from owners looking to leave the industry, and to sell on the vessels while holding onto licences and fishing rights. These are then allocated to the new vessels that are jointly owned by Scopale and the skippers, ensuring that fishing rights remain in Boulogne.
Rose de Cascia is the first, with two more to be delivered this year, and Éric Gosselin confirmed that there will be at least two more.
Rose de Cascia has Padmos winches designed for handling both seine rope and with clutchable drums for trawl warps when switching to demersal or pelagic trawling or scalloping, providing the vessel with several fishing options depending on the seasons.
‘We went to yards in Spain, Denmark, Scotland, France and Holland and ended up with a shortlist of two French yards and one in Holland – and the final choice went to Padmos in Holland, with the hulls built in France at Manche Industrie Marine (MIM) in Dieppe,’ CME’s Éric Gosselin said. ‘MIM Is a good yard, and it was also important to keep part of the construction in France.’
Leon Padmos, director of the Padmos yard at Stellendam in Holland said that the yard’s track record, not least with the numerous extensive refits it has carried out converting trawlers to seine netting, as well as the experience with the Dutch new generation twin-rigger Immanuel MDV-1, were strongly in their favour.
Look out for the full story on Rose de Cascia and the series of newbuilds for Boulogne in the August issue of Hook and Net, due later this week.
