The government has continued with its objective of auctioning fish to the highest bidders. In a joint announcement, the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises and Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources said they jointly plan to auction 13 584 metric ton (MT) of horse mackerel and 1000 Metric tons of monk to the highest bidders.
The Marine Resources Act makes provision for the state to utilise or harvest marine resources to advance any social-economic, cultural or other governmental objectives in the public interest. The bids will close on 14 June.
The tender conditions include that bids must be in multiples of 100 metric ton with a minimum price of N$10 000 per MT for freezer fish. Each bidder is expected to furnish a bid security deposit equal to the reserve price per MT multiplied by the volume of MT applied for.
Each bidder is expected to furnish a bank guarantee equal to their bid price per MT multiplied by the volume of MT applied for.
The allotment of bids will be determined by the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises as soon as possible following the closure time of the auction. Quota will be allocated to the highest bidders at their bid-price, ascending from highest to lowest, until the full 1000 MT have been allocated, or the reserve price has been reached.
The announcement said bidders that submit bids below the lowest clearing price or the reserve price, will be deemed unsuccessful. The Minister of Finance and Public Enterprises said it will not allot bids below the reserve price, nor allot the residual quotas through any other means should the reserve price not be met for the full 1000 MT on offer. The full auction results will be announced by mid-July.
The other conditions are that the marine resources should be harvested by a fishing vessel, which shall take into account the number of Namibian citizens operating in such a vessel which shall not be less than 55%.
The minister reserves the right to allot more or less than the amount allocated to either wet or freezer but limited to the total allocated governmental objective quota or reject any bids or make partial allotment in respect of bids at the highest bid price against which any bid receives an allocation. The Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources will designate the successful bidders to catch the awarded quota over the harvesting period, thus this quota only applies to governmental objective fish quota allocated for 2024 fishing harvest period.
