Plastic 350 is the ninth boat repaired in the dry dock, which will be sailing in the next few hours (Photo: Ortelio)
The repair and sailing of eight vessels dedicated to the fishing of scale species, resources saving and reduction of the cost and time of rehabilitation are the main advantages of the large dry dock recently recovered in the Base Business Unit (UEB) Júcaro Marine-Fishing Fleet.
Reinerio Díaz Betancourt, director of the UEB, told Granma that the recovery of the dry dock was with its own resources and the entry into operation, after remaining inactive for a decade, is an essential step in the progress of the organization he directs by increasing the number of fishing facilities.
He cited among the main actions the recovery of about 100 meters (much of them submerged in water) of railway lines that support the structure on which the ship rests; also the manufacture in the own unit of washers, essential for the correct operation of the structure, certified to support up to 130 tons of weight.
"Since last April, he specified, we do not have to move the boats to the Manzanillo shipyards, in Granma, or Cienfuegos, both on the southern coast of Cuba, very distant from our unit."
Díaz Betancourt mentioned as other advantages the better planning of ship repairs and the provision of services - according to the availability of resources and priorities - to third parties, mainly to vessels in the Tourism sector and those belonging to natural individuals, also dedicated to fishing.
The completion of the eight vessels in just over four months - the ninth one is in the finishing phase - raises the technical availability coefficient of the fleet and, therefore, constitutes a boost to the Ciego de Ávila`s fishing sector, the manager commented.
The beginning of the repairs of the boats dedicated to the extraction of shrimp, larger than the scale ones, constitutes the most daring purpose of the group of technicians, specialists and fishermen of the unit. If they are sent to foreign shipyards, their come back to the sea will take six months or more, while if the works are carried out by their own efforts, that period of time is shortened to one month, according to managers, specialists and employers.
Portal Avileño confirmed that, until July 2020, Júcaro-Fishing, the most important fleet in the province, also dedicated to the fishing of sierra (a fish species), which substitutes imports and the capture of shrimp, extracted only 26 tons of this last species and in the same period of this year, with a better organization of the productive flow. The figure increased to 68, despite working only 65 of the 180 campaign days, mainly due to lack of fuel.