Argentina opens squid fishing season

The fleet operating under an Argentine licence is made up of around 50 ships with national capital, but mainly Chinese and Spanish. It does not exceed 10 percent of the foreign fleet that fishes on the edge of the EEZ, and is only half of the fleet that plunders under an illegal British licence in the Malvinas.

16 de January de 2025 09:54

They are lifting about 40 tons per day, which bodes well for a good first season 2025-

The fishing season for the Illex argentinus squid has officially begun in Argentine waters, marking an event of great relevance for national fishing activity, according to the specialized media Pescare . Before the end of the year, a fleet made up mostly of Argentine-flagged vessels, belonging to mixed Chinese-Argentine interests , began exploratory operations in the southern Patagonian stock, specifically in the region between parallels 49°S and 52°S.

Following authorization to operate between parallels 44°S and 52°S from January 7, initially limited to vessels that carried out fishing efforts south of parallel 49°S, the same fleet resumed its activities in search of the resource.

At the same time, between January 7 and 10, the rest of the national fleet, which includes local companies and firms of Spanish and Asian origin, set sail from different ports. Mar del Plata stood out as the logistical epicenter with the departure of 32 squid jigger vessels in total , reaffirming its central role in Argentine fishing.

Since January 12, with the opening of the area south of parallel 44°S, the entire fleet is operating in two large concentrations. The first, led by the vessels that began the first outings of the season, made up of 9 squid jigger vessels, is located around a circle with epicenter at Lat. 47°40´S and Long. 64°20´W, covering a radius of no more than 25 nautical miles in front of Puerto Deseado, on the southern edge of San Jorge Gulf. The second and largest, with 48 squid jigger vessels , operates longitudinally between Lat. 46°00´S-46°45´S and Long. 62°20´W-62°45´W.

In both areas, favourable weather conditions and initial catches of commercial size SS and S squid were recorded, although the concentration of a greater number of vessels in the north shows a better biological profile.

Volumes vary significantly depending on resource concentrations, with sporadic yields reaching up to 40 tons per day in prominent vessels. These initial figures, although modest due to the possibility of occurring only in some vessels of the total fleet, generate optimistic expectations for the development of the harvest, especially if a sustained trend of catches is achieved after identifying higher concentrations of cephalopods.

In parallel to national activity, there is an increase in the presence of foreign fleets, particularly Asian ones, operating near the Argentine Exclusive Economic Zone (ZEEA). This year, these fleets present a greater number of trawlers, many under flags of convenience such as Vanuatu, but linked to Chinese interests.

The total number of foreign vessels fishing in Mile 201 is well over 500, two-thirds of them Chinese-owned and, in the case of squid jiggers, more than three-quarters of the total.

Meanwhile, in the waters surrounding the Malvinas and under illegal British licence, there are more than 100 ships concentrated, most of them from South Korea, Taiwan, Spain and Vanuatu.

 

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