3.6 



MALTA 



Malta had only one vessel registering more than 500-Gross Registered Tons (GRT) in 1992, but this increased 

 to 7 vessels in 1993. There were, in fact, a total of 33 reflagged vessels flying the Maltese flag in 1993, ranging 

 from the Malout flOS-GRT) to the Norfisk II. (2,656-GRT). The vessels included former Libyan, Norwegian, 

 Spanish, Ukranian, and UK-flag fishing vessels. Most of the vessels are fairly small (under 200-GRT) and several 

 have been in Malta's fishing fleet for over 15 years. Malta, however, recently added 7 fishing vessels over 1,000- 

 GRT. The authors believe that as many as 17 vessels may have been reflagged in Malta in 1993. 



CONTENTS 



1. General Backgroimd 223 



2. Fleet Background 223 



3. Modernization Programs 224 



4. Decommissioning Programs 224 



5. Shipyards 224 



6. International Agreements 224 



7. Fleet Dispersal Plans 224 



Sources 225 



Endnotes 229 



1. General Background 



2. Fleet Background 



Malta is a small Mediterranean country 

 consisting of three islands, Malta, Gozo, and 

 Comino. It is about twice the size of the District of 

 Columbia. The total area of the islands is 320 square 

 kilometers (km). The country has a coastline of 140 

 kilometers. Malta has an exclusive fishing zone that 

 extends out for 25 nautical miles and a territorial sea 

 that extends out 12 miles. Malta, located 93 km 

 south of Sicily, had 275 registered full-time 

 fishermen and 1,231 part-time fishermen at the end 

 of 1992.' The country reported a catch of 539 tons 

 of fresh fish for 1992, 37 tons of which was 

 exported, while it imported nearly twice this amount 

 in frozen fish. The importation of fresh fish is 

 strictly controlled. - 



Malta's fishing fleet consists of large numbers of 

 privately owned small, wooden boats with a few 

 small steel trawlers. There were 724 fishing vessels 

 registered in Malta in 1977, including 709 small 

 wooden boats, 11 fiberglass boats, and 4 steel ships.' 

 The steel-hulled vessels included the Hannibal and 

 the Resound, which were built for a joint venture 

 fishing company involving Malta and Libya and the 

 and Malout which was loaned or given to Malta by 

 Morocco in the mid-1970s. Lloyd's Register of 

 Shipping Statistical Tables lists one high-seas vessel 

 registered as a fishing vessel in Malta.'* The vessel, 

 reportedly 998-GRT, first appeared on Malta's rolls 

 in 1982. The ship was not listed during 1983-84 and 

 then reappeared in 1985. At the end of 1992, there 

 was a total of 1,417 local fishing vessels. Of these. 



223 



