Overview
- Catalan authorities say about 80% of the trawl fleet is moored after exhausting EU-allowed days, risking shortfalls of shrimp, monkfish and Norway lobster for Christmas.
- Agriculture minister Òscar Ordeig and guild leader Antoni Abad have asked the European Commission to authorize additional days, with Abad urging Madrid to press Commissioner Costas Kadis.
- Officials describe a quota-days paradox in which recovered shrimp stocks lead vessels to hit their permitted kilos quickly, reducing time at sea despite higher abundance.
- If Brussels does not grant extra days, Spain is considering letting crews draw on part of their 2026 allocation to keep working through the rest of 2025.
- Last year’s limited reopening was allowed on the condition that days be deducted from 2025, a carryover that has contributed to the current early shutdown.