No, not the plinth for a statue in the middle of the harbour - this is the new base for a new harbour crane can be used to lift heavy gear or even small boats out of the water...
the ex-French trawler built by Glehen in Guilvinec in 1987 and now registered in Newry and re-named Northern Osprey...
back in Newlyn again and this time in a different berth...
and testimony to her size, the Newry registered trawler Unity draws more at her bow than any regular Newlyn boat does at the stern...
at high water she moved to a floating berth on the Stone Quay as the south pier is known locally...
her fishing capacity is such that the fish hatch atop the shelterdeck even has a gutting tray for when she takes excessive hauls...
built by the Toms yard at Polruan, Cornwall the stern trawler Kindred Spirit...
and ahead of the the Brixham registered scalloper, BM519 Aquinis...
the immaculate wooden Inverness registered prawn trawler, Reul na Mara...
back in port to land her trip of frozen langoustine, BF432 Vison...
the largest scalloper operating in the UK, DS8 Sylvia Bowers. The Sylivia Bowers was one of the Scott Trawlers fleet recently bought by Macduff Shellfish:
MACDUFF SHELLFISH ACQUIRES SCOTT TRAWLERS
The UK’s largest wild caught shellfish processor, Macduff Shellfish, has acquired the UK’s largest scallop fishing fleet, Scott Trawlers, in a ground-breaking deal for the two businesses, backed by Royal Bank of Scotland.
The deal, a first for Macduff Shellfish in acquiring a whole fleet of fishing vessels, brings together two major players in the shellfish industry and enables greater integration through the scallop fishing, processing, sales and marketing process. It forms part of an ambitious plan by Macduff Shellfish to double the size of its business in the next five years.
Scott Trawlers, based in Dumfries, operates five scallop fishing vessels, two of which have ‘frozen at sea’ capabilities, unique in the scallop industry. The vessels account for over 15% of all UK scallop landings. The company also has a fleet of refrigerated lorries and a marine engineering business, catering for the equipment needs of scallop fishermen. Scott Trawlers employs 50 employees across the three operations, 35 of whom are fishermen.
Macduff Shellfish, based in Mintlaw near Peterhead, processes shellfish and exports to Europe and the Far East as well as supplying the UK market.
Commenting on the deal Euan Beaton, Chairman of Macduff Shellfish, said:
«Owning an entire fishing fleet is a first for Macduff Shellfish. This significant deal enables us to expand our scallop business, allows us to have a full chain of custody from the sea to the customer and consolidates a solid 15 year relationship between the two businesses.»
«Scott Trawlers has seen continuous investment which is apparent from the quality of the vessels, onboard equipment and exceptional calibre of the team and that was particularly attractive to us. We look forward to working with them all in taking the business forward.»
«This is a really exciting time in Macduff Shellfish’s continued expansion. Over the last 10 years we’ve quadrupled the business. In the next five years I’d like us to double it again with further acquisitions such as this and through organic growth, including diversifying into other shellfish categories.»
Andy Scott, CEO of Scott Trawlers, added:
«The team at Macduff Shellfish have a strong work ethic, are ambitious and continually invest in their business. The two businesses are a great fit and that was very important to me as I looked for ways in which I could still operate and grow the business but in partnership with a like-minded operation.»
«We have always been at the forefront of the scallop sector and this deal enables us to bring forward innovation from the catch through to the end product. That provides an exciting future for Scott Trawlers working as part of a much bigger team.»
Scott Trawlers will become a subsidiary of Macduff Shellfish, based in Dumfries and staff will continue to report into Andy Scott.
Although this is the first acquisition of a fishing fleet, Macduff Shellfish provides financing assistance to fishermen looking to purchase a vessel or invest in equipment in a constant effort to secure supply.
Euan Beaton added:
«To date we have financing arrangements in place with nine vessels. We are keen to expand this as well as looking at other acquisitions within the shellfish industry.»
Rory McPherson, Head of Structured Finance, Aberdeen, Royal Bank of Scotland Corporate & Institutional Banking, said : «We are delighted to be able to support this deal which brings together two industry leading companies led by excellent management teams.»
«The business case for this deal is compelling and will help to drive the growth of Macduff Shellfish in order to reach its ambitious targets. Our involvement in this deal underlines our commitment to support quality businesses in the North East of Scotland.»
The background to this story is interesting in its own right:
Andy Scott, who is well known in motorsport circles, was prompted to enter the fishing industry as a result of the Chernobyl disaster which impacted negatively on the Scottish lamb industry and had a knock-on effect on his haulage operation. He set up as a sole owner of a scallop boat in 1992, establishing Scott Trawlers, a family business that he ran with his three sons, as a limited company in 2000. Andy sold a small scallop processing business, Scott Trawlers Plymouth, to its management team last year.
Scott Trawlers operates five scallop fishing vessels, which fish around UK waters - DS10 – Albion ; DS11 Vertrouwen ; PD905 Honeybourne III ; DS8 Sylvia Bowers (named after Andy’s mother) and DS7 – Jacoba.
Macduff Shellfish was set up in 1985 in Macduff buying and selling live shellfish direct from the fishermen for freight to Europe. The factory in Mintlaw was bought in 1996 as the company diversified from chilled into frozen shellfish, the mainstay of its current operation which sees products distributed globally.
Meanwhile out in the bay the Trinity House service vessel Galatea is at anchor between jobs.
