NLIS 4
August 31, 2005
(Fisheries and Aquaculture)
Minister comments on New Ferolle
and Englee
Fisheries and Aquaculture Minister Trevor Taylor
today responded to comments made by Opposition Leader Gerry Reid regarding the
selection of an operator for the plant in New Ferolle for the 2005 fishing
season.
The Department of Finance seized the New Ferolle property earlier this year from
James Doyle (Sr.) and Sons Limited due to default of mortgage obligations, and
subsequently leased it temporarily to Ice Cap Fish Company. This arrangement
allowed the plant to operate this season while the necessary outstanding legal
issues involved in divestiture are resolved prior to the property being sold.
�We had few options that would ensure the plant would operate this spring other
than entering into a temporary lease arrangement with Ice Cap,� Minister Taylor
said. �We could have instead waited and offered the plant for sale once the
legal issues were resolved, but that would have resulted in the plant not
operating this year and no one in the community wanted that. Plant workers and
harvesters employed by Ice Cap strongly supported this arrangement.�
Ice Cap Fisheries had been operating the plant under a lease arrangement with
the previous owners. Government has been attempting to recover a $771,200 debt
from James Doyle (Sr.) and Sons Limited resulting from a payout of a loan
guarantee in 1997. The previous government guaranteed a loan of $771,200 to
James Doyle (Sr.) and Sons Limited, while the former Enterprise Newfoundland and
Labrador had approximately $1.2 million in outstanding equity investments.
In 2004, the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture agreed to temporarily
transfer the processing licence from James Doyle (Sr.) and Sons Limited to Ice
Cap in 2004 to give the two companies an opportunity to resolve outstanding
financial and legal issues involved in submitting a proposal to government for
repayment. When an agreement was not reached by the deadline of November 1,
2004, the Department of Finance made arrangements to seize the property in an
attempt to recover the money owed.
�This is a one-year lease with Ice Cap until a buyer can be found. It�s
unfortunate that the company is currently facing short-term cash flow problems
that have resulted in their failure to meet their cash obligations, including
their payroll,� Minister Taylor said. �One thing the Opposition leader is
forgetting in his criticism of government is that we wouldn�t be in this
situation if the previous administration had not put $2-million into an
operation that is worth less than $500,000 and without adequate security.�
The Labour Relations Agency has been approached by some employees and is working
to provide a resolution to the issue of employees not receiving pay owed.
The Opposition leader also makes reference to the situation in Englee, where the
plant there was closed last year due to structural issues. Residents are
understandably frustrated that the company that owns the plant and the
processing licence has not indicated what it plans to do. Government is
committed to finding a resolution to the issue facing Englee and to pressuring
the company to state its intentions. However, it must be done responsibly and
within the policies and procedures in place to handle licensing issues.�
�Unlike the previous government, we want to make sure if we end up in court we
have the best possible chance of winning,� Minister Taylor said. �Despite his
criticism, the Opposition leader is not doing anything to assist the people of
Englee or to offer solutions to their problems. If he has the answers, he should
provide them to the people of Englee. Unfortunately he did not have the answers
for Englee when he was the minister and he hasn�t found them since.�
Media contact. Tracy Barron, Communications, (709) 729-3733, 690-6157
2005 08 31
3:50 p.m. |