What’s being touted as one of the largest Canadian-owned fishing vessels has docked in St. John’s Harbour.
The Inuksuk II is owned by Baffin Fisheries.
That company is owned by five different Inuit hunter and trapper associations in Nunavut, but it also has offices in this province.
CEO Chris Flanagan says the vessel is 80 meters long, has both factory and freezing capacity on board, and can handle both groundfish and shrimp. It can also specifically hold over 1,000 tonnes of Greenland halibut.
Flanagan says over half of their crewmembers are from this province.
He says they wish they could land in Nunavut, but it is iced in, and there aren’t any ports that can handle such a vessel. He says they will often land in Bay Roberts, Harbour Grace, or St. Anthony, and from there, the product is offloaded and shipped around the world. He notes this province also plays a significant role in vessel maintenance.
