A drastic reduction in the mackerel quota has led two Chilean fishing companies to merge.
Pesquera Itata and Pesquera El Golfo announced the agreement on Tuesday, the El Mercurio newspaper reported. Collectively, the companies have an annual turnover of USD 400 million and employ 1,200 people.
Sergio Sarquis, president of Pesquera Itata, told El Mercurio that the merger only made sense given this year’s 76 percent cut in the mackerel quota, to 312,000 metric tons, and the significant synergies that will result from the combination of the two pelagic fishing operations.
The deal is expected to close within six months.
In addition to mackerel, Pesquera Itata and Pesquera El Golfo also sell farmed salmon. Chile’s salmon-farming industry is still recovering from the infectious salmon anemia (ISA) outbreak that has diminished production considerably. According to El Mercurio, Chile’s salmon exports totaled USD 1.8 billion last year, down from a 2006 peak of USD 2.5 billion, but are expected to return to 2006 levels by 2013.
The merger of Pesquera Itata and Pesquera El Golfo comes about a week after fellow Chilean companies Camanchaca and Pesquera Bio Bio combined their pelagic fishing operations following the mackerel quota cut.
