UK authorities choose TrackWell VMS

This system is required to manage the activity of all UK fishing vessels subject to the EU regulations for VMS and of all EU flagged vessels that are fishing in UK waters.

The UK Fisheries Authorities (UKFAs) are responsible for their respective fisheries and fleets and collectively, under the leadership of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for meeting the UK flag state obligations under EU Fisheries regulations.

Through Defra, the UKFAs have awarded the contract for the provision of the UK VMS Communication Hub and the corresponding user interface applications to TrackWell, as a result of an open tender under EU procurement rules.

The contract requires installation, support and service provision of TrackWell‘s highly advanced VMS and is to be delivered for full operation before the end of 2012.

The UK VMS is to track the location of all UK licensed fishing vessels over 12m in length, wherever they operate; foreign licensed fishing vessels operating in UK waters; fishing vessels operating in waters controlled by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMO´s); and, foreign vessels when engaged in EU joint deployment exercises.

Messages are exchanged with some 15 EU member states, third countries and regional fisheries offices. Position data from UK fishing vessels operating outside British Fisheries Limits (BFLs) is routed to EU and third (non EU) countries in accordance with EU regulations and bilateral agreements. The VMS platform provides the UKFAs with a variety of automatic monitoring tools, for example to monitor timely reception of position reports and to detect breaches of fisheries regulations.

A spokesperson from Defra said, “It was a tough competition from which Trackwell were selected as the most economically advantageous tender for the UKFAs, and we look forward to establishing a productive and successful partnership with them in meeting the UKFAs’ VMS requirements in the coming years.”