Fishermen to ask Energy Ministry to import regular gas

Saying higher fish prices are not an option, San Fernando Fishing Co-operative Society president Salim Gool is predicting the demise of the fishing industry if the government goes ahead with its plan not to import regular gasoline.

Regular gasoline is used primarily by fishermen in their boat engines.

He said government should consider importing between 50,000 and 100,000 barrels, and not a mere 8,000 barrels of regular gasoline, per month for the industry to survive.

Gool was addressing a meeting of fishermen at the San Fernando fishing facility, Kings Wharf, San Fernando yesterday.

He also signalled the aociety’s intention to write to the Ministry of Energy about its concerns, saying super gasoline was not only more expensive but would damage their engines, as they used more fuel per hour than the average car.

He said fishing boats were usually equipped with fuel “booms” containing 63 litres of fuel when going fishing, and a boat used approximately 40 litres per hour, and super gas, which is $4.97 per litre, cost some $2.37 more than regular gas at $2.60 per litre.

“Fishermen would carry about two and three booms of fuel when they going out," he explained, "because you don’t know where the fish will be, and this is especially true in the Gulf (of Paria) where there is so much industrialisation: it have large tankers and rigs and you cannot fish near them.

“So just imagine, it costs more to use super, and this doesn’t include oil, because you have to use extra oil when using super.”