The first steel fishing vessels built under a Government pilot projecthave helped fishermen enjoy bumper catches by staying longer inVietnam’s offshore fishing grounds.

The Shipbuilding IndustryCorporation (SBIC) was tasked with building steel vessels to replacetens of thousands of wooden boats nationwide, promoting offshore catchquality and the safety of fishermen.

Vu Ngoc Binh from theSBIC’s Song Dao Shipbuilding Joint Stock Company said that two of thefirst six steel vessels were handed to fishermen in Hai Hau district,the northern coastal province of Nam Dinh.

They measure around 25m in length and can cruise 10 nautical miles per hour.

Their holds are standardised to preserve catches longer and minimise fuel consumed, thus extending fishing trips, he said.

Eachof them is equipped sufficiently for an eight-member crew to stay onboard for 20 days, Binh noted, adding that fishermen can buy the shipson hire purchase under concessional terms.

Fisherman Pham XuanKinh, who works on one of the two steel vessels, said that his ship wasbought for 5 billion VND (over 238,000 USD) at an interest rate of 0percent.

Despite being costlier than wooden vessels, the steelone is able to operate for 30 years, three times as long, and withstandharsher weather conditions, thus helping prolong fishing trips andhalving expenses, he said.

After each 10-day trip on the newvessel, his crew caught more than 1.2 tonnes of mackerel and tuna,generating some 200 million VND (9,500 USD) in revenue.

He addedevery trip costs 37.5 million VND (nearly 1,800 USD) while it takes upto 50 million VND (2,400 USD) for a trip by wooden vessels.

Kinhsaid he hopes the Government will expand the project so that fishermenlike him can work in offshore waters longer and more safely, bringingabout higher economic values and also affirming Vietnam’s sovereignty inthe sea.

Statistics show that some 24,500 wooden fishing vessels need to be replaced with steel ones across the country.-VNA