Permit requests exceed quota

JAKARTA (JP): Local fishing companies' applications to import fishing boats had exceeded this year's quota of 240 vessels, a senior official at the Ministry of Agriculture said yesterday.

Boedi Soesilo, a director at the Directorate General for Fisheries, said the orders came from 25 local fishing companies.

He said companies could apply for licenses until Dec. 17 even though the quota had been exceeded.

The government had banned fishing-boat imports to promote domestic ship building. The ban was lifted early this year after local ship builders failed to meet local demand.

Under the new rules, fishing companies must obtain a government license to import ships.

Boedi said because the applications to import fishing boats had exceeded the quota, the government would select applicants and determine the number of boats each might import.

He said selection, overseen by the agriculture minister, was scheduled for early next year.

Under the rules, Boedi said, companies licensed to import fishing boats, would also have to buy domestically-built ships.

He did not say how many domestically-built ships the companies would have to buy. (jsk)