fish auctions

On Saturday, the Federal Fisheries Agency held the last of three closed auctions for seafood quotas, at which king crab was sold for the first time in the Barents Sea. Kommersant correspondent ALEXEY SHAPOVALOV witnessed the monopolization of the industry.

Let us remind you that according to the new system of distribution of marine biological resources, which came into force on January 1, 2004, fish auctions have been cancelled. Now fishing quotas are provided to fishing companies, firstly, not for one year (as was the case with auctions), but for five years (for more details, see Kommersant of April 9, 2004). Secondly, quotas are distributed according to the so-called historical basis, that is, the largest share of the annual catch will be received by enterprises that actively purchased quotas at fish auctions in the last three years. However, even after the cancellation of fish auctions, the exchanges did not remain idle. The new system provides that quotas for the extraction of biological resources that are newly permitted for use for industrial purposes, as well as for the catch of seafood in newly developed fishing areas, can be put up for auction. Just such an auction was held on Saturday: for the first time, Kamchatka crab was sold in the Barents Sea.

Representatives of 34 fishing companies registered to participate in the closed auction, but potential winners could be determined before it began. The goods put up for auction are highly liquid. Kamchatka crab is called “currency crab” by fishermen and, for example, on the US market it costs up to $22 per 1 kg. The auction began with the sale of a lot for a 100% quota of crab fishing in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug in the Barents Sea. The starting price was 1.2 million rubles. In just ten minutes it rose to 69 million rubles. Representatives of only six companies took part in the fight. The winner, #3, never lowered his sign while the presenter increased the price of the lot, while others were unable to raise their bids even to 20 million rubles.

The same thing happened with the quotas of the Arkhangelsk region for catching Kamchatka crab in the Barents Sea - the price of the lot, thanks to the efforts of one participant, rose from 1 million to 39 million rubles in a matter of minutes. The total amount for the lots was 213 million rubles. But the most fierce fight for crab occurred between sailors of the Murmansk region. Nine lots were put up for it, ranging in size from only 7.51% to 2.4% of the state quota (the size of the quota is a state secret), while the initial price of the lot was significantly higher than others - it started at 2 million rubles. At first, representatives of small fishing farms tried to join the auction, but already at 15 million rubles per lot they withdrew their bids. Judging by visual observations, the struggle was between representatives of three large companies. And prices rose before our eyes from 2 million to 100 million rubles per lot. The total amount was 633.5 million rubles.

At the end of the auction, participants were invited to a banquet. The winners drank vodka in a small circle and invited each other to visit. The vanquished said goodbye without clinking glasses. A Kommersant correspondent asked the latter: “What is the point of your participation in the auction?” In response, one of the directors of the fishing artel admitted that, by and large, he had not counted on anything: “After all, they receive loans from Western companies,” he threw up his hands.

Crab is more valuable than money