Member Article

North Sea trawlers win Yorkshire Bank construction funding

North Sea family business, Lockers Trawlers, has won funding from Yorkshire Bank to construct the largest whitefish trawler built in England for the last eight years.

Construction has began on the ship, which will work out of Peterhead, Aberdeenshire, after the bank’s North Yorkshire Business Banking Centre in York awarded funding to the business, through the Investing for Growth scheme.

Lockers Trawlers provides a “guard ship service”, which supports commercial operations such as oil and gas providers and wind farming industries.

Investment from Yorkshire Bank will be used to build the 26m x 8.2m trawler, which is being constructed by Parkol Marine Engineering in Whitby.

The ship will be commissioned by Lockers in August next year and will join the existing fleet of fishing vessels in the North Sea between the Yorkshire coast and Norway.

Founder and managing director of the company, Arnold Locker commented: “Borrowing money is very difficult at the moment but we’ve been a Yorkshire Bank customer for more than 30 years and the Bank has always been very supportive and understood our needs.”

Mr Locker said the company would take advantage of rising North Sea fishing quotas and expand the guard ship business using the investment.

With a workforce of 40 staff, and an annual turnover of £5m, the firm has strong partnerships with Streonshalh Guard Vessels in Aberdeenshire and Groen Offshore Guard & Support Services in the Irish Sea.

Yorkshire Bank’s business partner for the North Yorkshire Business Banking Centre, Duncan Brock, said: “North Sea fishing is among Yorkshire and the North East’s historic and traditional
industries, and it plays a vital part of the region’s commercial diversity.

“Arnold Locker is a significant figure in the sector and we’re pleased to support the continuing expansion of his business.”

The fund enables businesses to re-invest cash into expansion, new employees, equipment, machinery and commercial development.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .