To encourage fishermen to go out fishing, the Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO) has announced that it distributed 68 tonnes of free ice last Thursday during a special promotion.
On Wednesday, MIFCO announced that it would provide up to 3 tonnes of free ice per vessel from all its centres and the Thinadhoo Ice Plant, until the daily stock ran out. Sharing the statistics of the ice distribution today, MIFCO stated that a total of 68 tonnes of ice was provided to 24 fishing vessels from three of its sites on Thursday.
Details of Ice Distribution:
MIFCO noted that no vessels took ice from the Addu Fisheries Complex (AFC). The company added that the details of the free ice distribution reflect the level of interest in fishing.
While the average cost to produce a tonne of ice is between MVR 1,300 and MVR 1,400, MIFCO currently sells a tonne of ice for MVR 750.
MIFCO highlighted that the demand for ice is higher among fishing vessels in the central Maldives, whereas many vessels in the south do not take ice because they have installed Refrigerated Sea Water (RSW) systems. Since it is a reliable system, many vessels are now aiming to install RSW systems. The Fisheries Ministry provides loan assistance for this purpose, and MIFCO anticipates that the demand for ice will significantly decrease in the future.
MIFCO also stated that it is in discussions with relevant authorities to provide technical assistance to fishing vessels that wish to install RSW systems.
