GRIMSTAD (VG) Fisherman Dagfinn Pettersen (53) will soon not be able to afford to go to sea. Now he fears a wave of bankruptcy in the entire industry.
Less than 20 minutes ago
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For the shrimp fishermen in southern Norway, every hour in the boat is a battle for existence.
– It looks dark. We don’t make money, sighs Pettersen.
With a determined hand on the wheel, the course is directed towards the sea gap. The fisherman has one goal in mind: to get as many shrimp as possible per hour. If he’s lucky, he might be able to break even.
– Diesel costs the shirt. We don’t have a chance.
–Now it is not only the forces of nature that the fishermen are fighting a hard battle against. In 2022, market forces are the toughest opponent.
With small operating margins and no large fisheries to switch to, the coastal shrimp fishermen in southern Norway are extra vulnerable. Fuel is by far the biggest expense.
Last month, Pettersen spent around NOK 500,000 on diesel alone. The catch he got was worth NOK 800,000. The profit is barely enough to cover all the equipment, high fees and not least the salaries of four employees.
He himself has taken neither salary nor holiday in recent years.
– I don’t understand why we should bother with this. We are out day and night just to survive.
–Figures from Fiskerlaget Sør show that the average price for marine gas oil (MGO) has increased by over 350 per cent since 2020. Sanctions against Russia are part of the explanation. In addition, the CO₂ tax has increased by 41 per cent in the same period.
Shrimp fishermen work in shifts and are out at sea many days in a row. This means that the boat “Vågan” uses diesel 24 hours a day.
Pettersen points to one of the many screens he keeps a close eye on.
– Do you see that? We now use 82 liters per hour.
He dreads filling the tank. Prices have been around NOK 21 per liter this summer. This means that Pettersen spends in excess of NOK 40,000 on diesel for a day of fishing, if he keeps the same speed.
– If you had put in the same number of working hours in any other job, you would have earned millions, says Tobias Rosendal Bech (22).
He fishes for prawns with his own boat on Tjøme, and is a representative of Fiskerlaget Sør.
– It is expensive to be poor, he says.
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Going to Denmark
The shrimp fishermen say that they feel forgotten in the big picture. Now more people resort to extreme solutions.
– We have shouted warning, warning for many years, says Bech.
Pettersen knows several people who take the boat to Denmark to fill up with diesel.
– The trip takes eight hours each way, but then diesel costs NOK 11 per liter instead of NOK 21. Many people save money, but I don’t want to delay my crew for that trip, he says.
As a last resort, several have put their boats up for sale. But that is not an option for Pettersen.
– No one has either the desire or the money to buy. You end up with nothing at all, he says despairingly.
–Fear of the future
It is a calm day out at sea, but the fishermen themselves are worried about what awaits them ahead.
– The future looks bleak, says Stig Pettersen (26).
He is the son of Dagfinn and dreams of being able to live by fishing himself for a long time to come.
– It is a way of life. If you sell the boat, you are in a way selling your life.
Father agrees. He has been at sea since he was 16, building himself up from the bottom. But he fears that he will soon have no choice but to bankrupt himself.
– I know three things: fishing, tearing apart shrimp trawls and fixing shrimp trawls. If there is no improvement, I have no idea what to do.
– I don’t want to dismiss my son.
On top of it all comes stress and pressure to deliver the goods. Pettersen has agreements with shops and restaurants in Grimstad that depend on regular delivery.
– Otherwise, there will be no need for people, or assignments for me next year, he says.
Labor season
– Dagfinn is one of the very best shrimp fishermen. It is remarkable when he says what he does, says Bech.
He puts all his body weight on the handle to pull in the shrimp trawls. It smells like a mixture of salt water and desperation on deck.
Precious and not least ultra-fresh Norwegian prawns trickle in. The small treasures almost match Stig Pettersen’s orange rubber boots. At an impressive pace, he sorts and packs the catch.
– I’m probably the only prawn fisherman who doesn’t like prawns, he laughs.
Afterwards, the catch must be weighed and cooked, before being put on ice and delivered to the fish reception.
To make money, catch per hour should be between 30-40 kilos, says Pettersen.
– But unfortunately it has been a slow shrimp season so far. This year we have been satisfied with 20 kilos per hour, as we got today, he says.
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– Absolutely disastrous
If this trend continues, it will not only mean the hook on the door for the shrimp industry, but it will also have drastic knock-on effects for related industries and local communities, the fishermen believe.
General manager, at the fish reception Fiskernes Salgslag in Grimstad, Stian Homme shares the concern.
– If we don’t get deliveries from the fishermen, we will be left here with nothing to do. Then more people lose their jobs.
The fish reception is dependent on deliveries from, among other things, Pettersen’s shrimp boat.
As young Bech from Fiskerlaget Sør jumps off the boat after the end of his trawling trip, he looks out over Grimstad’s guest harbor where it is teeming with people enjoying lazy summer days.
Bech fantasizes about one day having only sun and blue sky hanging over him, instead of dark bills.
– We are in a state of crisis. It is absolutely catastrophic. We need immediate measures, he concludes.