Marystown plant money-losing operation: external audit

An external audit released Friday supports Ocean Choice International's claim that it can't make money processing yellowtail flounder in Marystown.

Government-appointed auditors concluded that processing yellowtail at the Marystown fish plant will mean a net loss of $2.3 million for OCI and reveals that OCI has lost nearly $10 million at the plant over the past three years.

The head of Ocean Choice International said the results of the audit came as no surprise to the company.

"These were really our numbers and they confirmed exactly what we had said publically before, so we're not surprised, obviously, with that," said Martin Sullivan, CEO of Ocean Choice International.

"We've invested another $10 million in capital expenditures. So, we've had $20 million invested and no return at all."

The provincial fisheries minister is calling on OCI and the Fish, Food and Allied Workers to meet and determine a plan for the Marystown fish plant.

"If there's a role for government to play in this or other issues, then I await their proposal and their response to us," said Minister Darin King.

"There's upwards of 400 people whose jobs and lives are at stake in this mess and we owe it, and they owe it to the workers to try to figure out what this means. If it means the plant is going to remain open then we all need to know what that's going to look likeI'm not prepared to make any decisions on exemptions of red fish or exemptions of yellowtail until I know what the future looks like for the workforce in Marystown and the company in general."

The FFAWtold CBC News that it believes the province has a role to play to make sure jobs remain in Marystown.

"I understand the difficulty it puts companies in because I live every day with the difficulties thatit puts workers in so it hasn't been a picnic for anybody, so I think we need to find solutions, hopefully a little better than we've seen to date," said Alan Moulton, spokesperson for the FFAW.

Ocean Choice International told CBC News it is planning a meeting early next week to talk about the audit results. The company said it wants to be in a position to address the future of the Marystown plant before the end of the year.