Ports are open for business, BIM tells French

IRISH ports may benefit from a welcome jobs boost, following meetings between Agriculture Minster Simon Coveney, Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) and French organisations representing 850 fishing vessels.

BIM estimate that for every extra vessel landing its catch here for processing, an average of five jobs will be created. Total fishing opportunities in the waters around Ireland are valued at €1.2 billion.

The Irish fleets’ share of this is 18% in volume terms, worth some €200 million.

A high proportion of this fish is being caught by French vessels and Ireland could benefit greatly if French vessels landed an increased percentage of their catch in Ireland.

The French business groups were very impressed by the port facilities they visited.

They responded favourably to the suggestion that they could make huge savings on fuel by processing their catches in Ireland rather than racing back to France with each fresh load.

Mr Coveney said: “The French visitors left with a very clear message that Irish ports are open for business. They know that they can grade and process their catch here rather than heading back to France. They were very interested in this concept, and they want to develop mutually beneficial relationships with us.

“As we speak, there are 350 trawlers in Irish waters today. Many of those are French. We want them to use Irish ports and Irish services, and I am very hopeful that we can do real business with them.

“Our first priority is to ensure that the Irish fleet gets a strong share of the catch from Irish waters, but we also want to add to the volume of fish landing here.

“Around 1.2bn tonnes of fish are caught here each year, but only 240,000 tons are landed in Irish ports. That is not good enough. The Food Harvest 2020 strategy shows that shared resources through strategic initiatives, including other member states, will be central to economic development and today’s talks are a prime example of how this might work.”

Mr Coveney has asked BIM to report back to him within three months with a progress report on its partnerships with France.

BIM’s chief executive Jason Whooley said: “We need to think and act strategically; today is a good example of how that strategic thinking may be applied.”