The rise in the price of diesel continues to jeopardize the fishing sector, which has seen the price of fuel increase "from 40 cents to 1.2 euros per liter", explain from Optuna, the Organization of Tuna Producers of Lanzarote, high costs that many fishermen will not be able to cope with if the situation continues.
"The diesel for the boats was cheaper in the peninsula than in the Canary Islands on Thursday morning," they point out. The fishermen of Lanzarote are currently in the red tuna fishing season, although they insist that it is a difficult and increasingly expensive process.
"With 2000 tons collected you don't do anything because these boats cost a fortune and the fuel is getting more and more expensive," they say.
Aid that does not arrive
Despite this critical situation, sources from Optuna state that they have still not received any subsidy corresponding to the discount of the 20 cents of fuel approved by the Government last March.
“They told us that they would also discount the 20 cents for the boats, but nothing has arrived,” they say from Optuna. “If they subsidize an individual with their car, they should also do it with the boats, since they spend a tremendous amount of money”.
However, they also point out that on Thursday morning, they have confirmed that they would make the “refund of the amount corresponding to those 20 cents of diesel”, but for the moment “they have not given them more information” about it.
In addition, the organization comments that they have also been in talks with the Cabildo of Lanzarote to receive some aid, but still without confirmation.
“The fishermen's association told us that there was a subsidy item based on the boat you have and what you spend, but we still don't know anything,” they comment from Optuna. For their part, sources from the San Ginés Fishermen's Association state that it is a draft, but it is expected that they can be approved in the June call. "Everything will depend on the internal bureaucracy of the Cabildo", they point out.
The lack of personnel, another of the great burdens of the sector
“We don't have enough staff,” they say. “You have to really like the sea to dedicate yourself to this”.
Optuna blames the problem on the fact that people “no longer want to embark”, because the most experienced skippers “retire early” and the youngest “are in other types of professions”.
In addition, he explains that in Lanzarote they have an agreement with Morocco since 2005, where they provide Moroccan sailors if they need it. Professionals in the sector point out that sometimes “it is an advantage”, but at other times it is not, since “many are not professionals”.
They ask for a “general reduction in the price of diesel”
For its part, Optuna believes that the solution would be a “general reduction in the price of diesel” in the face of high fuel costs.
“Our boats sail to places like Madeira or Azores, so they spend a lot of fuel,” they say. “I have a boat that has been working for two months, with an expense of more than 20 tons of diesel and it has not caught a fish, so to speak, we cannot cope with these expenses”.
Finally, the sector does not rule out scrapping boats if the situation continues over time. “If you leave in March and moor in September, what do you do the rest of the months, you have to keep the business afloat somehow”, explain sources from the organization.
“It's just that if this doesn't change, we don't see a future”, they add. “Hopefully there will be a good campaign, a lot of tuna will be collected and we can compensate, while the aid arrives”.