The fishing industry is heavily in debt.

For January-June 2025, the profitability of fishing enterprises amounted to about 33%, said Ilya Shestakov, head of Rosrybolovstvo, during a meeting of President Vladimir Putin with government members. However, the industry remains significantly in debt, according to the Ministry of Agriculture; the debt burden exceeds 260 billion rubles. "The main loans are, of course, investments by companies in the construction of plants and vessels under the investment quota program," Shestakov explained. "Given the current bank rate, the financial situation of such companies is quite vulnerable. In this regard, we believe that it is necessary to approach issues of additional financial burden on the industry very carefully." The investment quota mechanism has been in effect since 2017. It provides for the allocation of fish catch quotas in exchange for investment commitments, including modernization or construction of fleets, including new generation trawlers that can process the catch on ...