Potential Rent and Overcapacity in the Swedish Baltic Sea Trawl Fishery

Abstract

Many EU fisheries have problems with depleted stocks and fleet overcapacity following from regulated open access regimes. Some EU countries have introduced Individual Vessel Quotas (IVQs), which can stop the race to catch and provide the fishers with incentives to minimize costs for a given catch. We model an IVQ fishery using a cost function approach and apply the methodology to the Swedish cod fishery in the Baltic Sea. We estimate a translog cost function for a data set of Swedish trawlers and assess the potential gains from a structural adjustment of the fleet. Results suggest potential cost savings of SEK 140 millions and a desirable fleet reduction of 25% for the Swedish Baltic Sea cod fishery.