Eight fishing vessels of between 20 and 30 metres have already been delivered to GPMB in Bordeaux to be scrapped under the French government’s decommissioning scheme, implemented to ease the pressure on the French fleet following Brexit.
A further three more fishing vessels are expected to arrive at the yard today. The eleven vessels to be dismantled at GPMB are from Brittany and the Basque Country.
A total of ninety French fishing vessels are expected to be scrapped under the Individual Support Plan (PAI) introduced by Secretary of State Hervé Breville. This is equivalent to 3% of the French fishing fleet and the scheme aims to compensate vessel owners prepared to leave the industry.
The eleven vessels will be taken to the GPMB yard in the Bacalan district of Bordeaux and drydocked to prepare them for dismantling. The initial stage is for the removal of grey and black water and bilge water, and the removal of propulsion and navigation systems, and interior fittings.
This first stage is expected to take four months. The second stage is projected to be a six-month process of stripping down and dismantling, to be carried out by specialist recycling company PAREC.
The Port of Bordeaux is one of the eighteen locations worldwide approved by the European Union for ship dismantling and the largest of its kind in France. The 240 by 34 metre floating dock and 3.5 hectares of yard space with several thousand square metres of watertight slabs ensure that GPMB is equipped to meet European, Hong Kong Convention, IMO and ILO standards.
