Source: Fish and Information Services
Brazil will have to wait a little longer than expected to for its new atlantic tuna terminal, which was planned to boost regional tuna catches.
While the former Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture (MPA), Ideli Salvatti, confirmed in June that in August this year the Natal Fishery Terminal would be operational, the start of activities has been postponed again.
Initially, in 2009 it had been planned that the terminal was going to be ready by November of the following year.
According to the current MPA head, Luiz Sérgio, the deadlines will not be met and the terminal will be ready in December.
For construction work a budget of BRL 40 million (USD 25.4 million) has been allocated.
According to Betinho Rosado, state secretary of Agriculture, the federal government will provide between BRL 25 million and BRL 28 million (USD 17.8 million-USD 15.9 million) and the State Government between BRL 15 million and BRL 12 million (USD 7.6 million-USD 9.5 million).
But the company responsible for the construction questions the value that will be paid by government authorities.
“The company wants to adjust the fees that should have been paid but weren’t. Thus, instead of needing BRL 7.9 million (USD 5 million), we need BRL 8.7 million (USD 5.5 million),†Rosado explained.
The work has been stopped since April and it is still necessary to extend the ice factory, build new water tanks and buy equipment to transport the fish.
In addition, the water depth must be increased and the cooling system improved, to allow larger vessels to dock at the port and the fish to be cooled at a temperature of under 60 degrees centigrades, Tribuna do Norte reported.
“The terminal was planned at a time when Brazil was exporting 4,000 tons of tuna. Now, after signing the agreement between the company Atlântico Tuna and the Japanese company Japan Tuna, this number will double,†Rosado added.