STAFF WRITER
The government has raised N$68.4 million from the auction of horse mackerel and hake fishing quotas, with all the quotas on offer successfully allocated.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Ministry of Finance, together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform, announced the results of the auctions held on 22 May 2026.
The auctions covered 11,037.11 metric tonnes (MT) of horse mackerel and 1,719.69 MT of hake under the Governmental Objective Fishing Quota.
According to the statement, the horse mackerel auction generated N$31.3 million, including N$9,000 collected in application fees. The hake auction raised N$37.2 million, including N$13,000 in application fees.
“The Horse Mackerel and Hake Fish auctions raised a total of N$31.3 million from the sale of 11,037.11 MT and N$37.2 million from the sale of 1,719.69 MT, respectively, inclusive of N$9,000 and N$13,000 raised from application fees. Accordingly, a total of N$68.4 million was raised from both auctions,” the statement said.
For the horse mackerel auction, bidders competed for 11,037.11 MT of quota. However, demand was much higher, with bids submitted for 32,414.84 MT in total. Of these, 6,622.27 MT of freezer quota and 4,414.84 MT of wet-fish quota were allocated, meaning the full quota was sold.
The government received nine bids for horse mackerel – six for freezer fish and three for wet fish. One freezer bid and one wet-fish bid were awarded in full, while one freezer bid was partially allocated.
Prices for freezer horse mackerel ranged from N$3,554 per MT to N$3,650 per MT, with a weighted average price of N$3,640.20 per MT. Wet-fish prices ranged from N$1,000 per MT to N$1,625 per MT.
The hake auction also attracted strong interest.
Although only 1,719.69 MT was available, bids were received for 8,139.38 MT – more than four times the volume on offer.
The government received 13 bids for hake, comprising seven freezer bids and six wet-fish bids. One bid in each category received a full allocation.
The freezer hake quota was sold at prices ranging from N$18,005 per MT to N$21,600 per MT, while wet hake prices ranged from N$14,199 per MT to N$21,600 per MT.
The statement noted that no quota remained unallocated after either auction.
“The auctions showed a substantial improvement in prices and no residual MT was recorded,” the ministries said.
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