Source: 
By ELLEN TIAMU
PAPUA New Guinea will soon become a haven for fish canneries with four new tuna processing plants planning to operate here.
Overseas investors find PNG an attractive business destination because of the country’s good fishing ground, market access to the European Union and National Fisheries Authority (NFA) concessions.
One such company, Majestic Seafood, will be signing a project agreement with the government and the Morobe provincial government on Tuesday in Port Moresby to allow it to commence work on a tuna canning factory in Malahang, Lae.
A groundbreaking ceremony to mark the commencement of work on the factory will take place at Malahang industrial center in Lae the next day.
Majestic Seafood is a joint venture partnership between Frabelle Fishing Corp of Philippines, Century Canning Corp, also of the Philippines, and Thai Union Manufacturing Co of Thailand.
Frabelle already operates in PNG as Frabelle PNG Ltd, based at Milfordhaven in Lae.
With an initial investment of US$30 million (K85 million), the fish cannery will have a processing capacity of 350mt of tuna per day and is expected to create 6,000 new jobs.
The NFA board has given approval for another company, ZZDF owned by a Chinese company, Zho Shan Zheyeng Deep Sea Fishing, to build a tuna processing plant also based at Malahang.
Trans Pacific Journey Fishing is yet another company hoping to start an off-shore processing plant in PNG.
It is a joint venture company of the Fishing Corp and TSP Marine Industries, both from the Philippines.
It is also set to sign a statement of intent with the government soon.
Another company, Niugini Tuna, is looking at setting up a fish production plant in Madang.