6,000 jobs at new tuna plant in Lae

THERE will be at least 6,000 jobs on offer to Papua New Guineans in Morobe province, thanks to the US$80 million (K226.6 million) integrated fish processing plant to be set up here.
 First phase will cost US$30 million  (K85 million)  which has a processing capacity of 130mt per day.
The national government through the National Fisheries Authority (NFA), together with Morobe provincial government, signed the project agreement with Asia’s Majestic Seafoods Ltd.
The 350mt per day tuna processing plant is to be constructed within the Malahang Industrial Centre in Lae.
Majestic Seafoods Ltd is a company put up by three major companies composed of Frabelle Fishing Corp (Philippines) operating in PNG as Frabelle (PNG) Ltd; Philippine-based Century Canning Corp; and Thailand-based Thai Union Corp, a subsidiary of Thai Union Frozen Products PCL (TUF).
According to company representatives Chris Po, president of Pacific Century Group; Narin Niruttinanon, deputy general manager Thai Union; and Frabelle president Engr Augusto Natividad, they would be bringing into the country and especially in Lae the technical know-how.
And in return, they asked for support from the people especially those that will be employed, and the provincial and national governments.
But the main ingredient that won the big names in Asia’s fishing industry over to PNG was the raw material tuna in PNG waters, which is part of the Western Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO).
Natividad said PNG was rich in tuna and through NFA it had a well-managed fishery in the world.
“We will be fishing within that allowable quarter to make sure that fishery will remain sustainable … it is the kind of resource that you can pass on for as long as we fish within that limit,” Natividad, who is also the director for Majestic Seafoods Ltd, said.
He also stressed the importance of the cost of production at the plant.
“That while we have the raw material here, we still have to compete with all other canneries all over the world. The market is the world.”
Natividad said the competition would come from tuna producing countries which included Thailand, Philippines, Ecuador, and Spain among others.
“So to make sure that we will have a cost that will be competitive, we need the support of everyone, especially the people who will work with us once the factory is in place.
“We have to work together to make this cost competitive,” he said.
Natividad commended NFA for having a very good food safety chain in place that was according to world standards, including the European Union (EU).
NFA managing director Sylvester Pokajam said the project was a foreign direct investment.
He said with Thai Union coming to PNG, a lot of things would change for the better since it (Thai Union) had changed Bangkok to be tuna centre in the world.
Niruttinanon said: “While we see the potential for PNG to become next tuna centre in the world, it must be stressed that the key success factor is actually the PNG people.”