Modernize fleet, improve offshore exploitation efficiency

In the context of increasingly declining coastal and offshore resources, the main orientation for the fishing industry is to develop a fleet of large, modern vessels to be able to go offshore... Therefore, in recent years, the fishing industry of Binh Thuan has had stable development, been restructured and transformed towards efficiency, safety, and sustainability, making a significant contribution to the socio -economic development of the province.

Application of scientific and technological advances

Binh Thuan is one of the key fishing provinces of the country, with a fleet of over 7,800 fishing vessels and tens of thousands of fishermen operating in the exploitation and services of aquatic products at sea. In recent years, coastal aquatic resources have been depleted, due to the large number of fishing vessels operating in coastal and offshore areas. In this situation, the agricultural sector has developed a roadmap to guide fishermen to change their fishing grounds by modernizing machinery and equipment to improve the capacity of their vessels, allowing them to go further offshore.

The province's large-capacity fleet (photo: N. Lan)

As one of the veteran fishermen in Hung Long Ward - Phan Thiet City, with decades of experience in the fishing industry, Mr. Nguyen Gat clearly understands that he must change the traditional fishing method, boldly invest in equipment, both saving human resources and materials, from which long-term fishing trips can be expected to bring in a full harvest of fish and shrimp. In 2022, he was one of the few fishermen in the province who boldly invested in a machine to filter seawater into fresh water, with the support of the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center. This is a very necessary model for offshore fishing fleets because the time for each fishing trip lasts 2-3 months, so the demand for fresh water on board is very large. Mr. Gat shared: “The family's 2 boats specialize in offshore fishing and trawling, so each trip lasts nearly 2 months and must carry more than 100 cans of fresh water (each can holds 30 liters) with an average cost of 1 million VND/trip/boat. Since applying the model of installing a machine to filter seawater into fresh water, with a filtering capacity of 100 liters/hour, it has helped us solve the problem of fresh water for daily life on the boat, saving time getting fresh water for each trip out to sea, saving fuel when having to carry a large amount of fresh water from the mainland; at the same time, ensuring a safe water source for fishermen to eat, drink and live. Because we are supported with 50% of the cost, we only pay 40 million VND/machine/boat. The model is really effective for offshore fishing fleets, helping fishermen save a lot of costs after each trip at sea in times when gasoline prices are high and seafood fishing is difficult.”

The application of scientific and technological advances helps fishermen improve their fishing efficiency. (Photo: N. Lan)

The application of scientific and technological advances and new technologies in seafood exploitation not only helps fishermen improve product quality and reduce costs in each trip, but also contributes to accelerating the modernization of fisheries and developing fisheries in a sustainable direction. Recently, through the Provincial Agricultural Extension Center, many fishermen have learned about the application of LED technology in seafood exploitation. Fisherman Le Van Xuan - Duc Long Ward - Phan Thiet City is one of the fishermen who has applied this model since mid-2023. After many trips at sea, Mr. Xuan's boat has been operating quite effectively. Mr. Xuan said: “By implementing the model, each ship will save about 50% of fuel compared to installing high-pressure bulbs and super lights as before. The amount of diesel to light 40 LED bulbs for each trip (7-10 days) is only about 150 liters. In addition, using LED lights when lighting, the fish stand on the light more strongly, attracting more fish than high-pressure bulbs. This model has helped us reduce fuel costs, thereby reducing costs for each sea trip.”

Currently, most ship owners in the province have invested in modernizing their fishing fleets in a synchronous manner; in which, 100% of offshore fishing vessels are fully equipped with marine electronic equipment, ensuring safety for people and fishing vessels according to regulations; 100% of offshore fishing vessels and purchasing service vessels are equipped with standard product storage tanks to reduce the post-harvest loss rate in fishing to below 10% by 2020.

Annual seafood exploitation output is quite stable (photo: N. Lan)

Reduce small capacity boats

Over the past 5 years, the province's fishing fleet has made significant progress, with fishermen boldly investing in building new large boats with fairly synchronous equipment. The number of fishing boats with the longest length of 15 meters or more has increased rapidly in terms of quantity, capacity and power. In 2017, the longest fishing boats with the longest length of 15 meters or more were 1,718, and by the end of 2023, there were 1,957, an increase of 239 compared to 2017 (with 41 fishing boats with a length of over 24 meters, 18 steel-hulled fishing boats, and 8 composite-hulled fishing boats). The development of the large-capacity boat group reflects the right shift in the structure of the province's seafood exploitation force in recent years. The number of large-capacity fishing vessels has been invested in quite modern equipment such as: seawater filters, horizontal detectors, hydraulic winches, fishing gear, etc. along with increasingly improved fishing methods suitable for fishing grounds, objects, and seasons. In addition, many fishing vessels have boldly improved their compartment systems, freezers, and preservation tools to improve the quality of post-exploitation products to meet market requirements. Thanks to that, the output of exploited aquatic products in 2023 reached 234,661 tons, an increase of 2.67% compared to 2017.

Fishermen boldly invest in building new large boats with fairly uniform equipment. Photo: N.Lan

In addition to developing large-capacity boats, reducing the number of small boats and limiting fishing activities that affect resources is always a concern of the fisheries sector. In the past, the province has implemented drastic measures, not developing small boats to exploit coastal areas; not issuing documents approving the construction of new fishing boats for trawling and not issuing new fishing licenses for trawling in any form. In 2017, the number of trawling boats (dredging) was 1,133, now there are only 731, a decrease of 402. In the period of 2020 - 2025, implementing the restructuring of the fisheries sector towards increasing the proportion of exploitation value, in which offshore exploitation accounts for 60%, the province also implemented solutions to develop good forms of sea linkage, forming a strong logistics service fleet at sea with 145 offshore logistics service vessels, purchasing at sea and continuing to maintain 158 solidarity groups/1,530 members. In addition, the form of community management of coastal resources has been implemented quite successfully, opening up an effective management direction for coastal resources, creating consensus among fishermen.

It can be said that the fishing industry in the province is increasingly proactive in investing in improving the capacity of vessels, searching for fishing grounds, and shifting from offshore fishing to offshore fishing. It is believed that the policies supporting the development of the fisheries sector that are being widely implemented will be a driving force to give fishermen more strength to stay at sea to get rich, while contributing to protecting the sovereignty of the sea and islands of the Fatherland.

To continue to encourage fishermen to build new large-capacity fishing vessels, in early 2018, the Government issued Decree 17 amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree 67. Notably, the state budget will provide one-time post-investment support for ship owners to build new fishing vessels or offshore logistics service vessels with a total main engine capacity of 800 CV or more. The newly built vessels will replace trawl vessels with a capacity of 90 CV or more and switch to encouraged occupations such as: purse seine, gillnet, line fishing, casting, and logistics services.

Source: https://baobinhthuan.com.vn/hien-dai-hoa-doi-tau-nang-cao-hieu-qua-khai-thac-xa-bo-117450.html