January 10, 2020 — An attempt to gain control of a large portion of Carlos Rafael’s fleet by the local seafood auction has been withdrawn after a fight over the vessels made its way to court.
Buyers and Sellers Exchange (BASE), the seafood display auction on the city’s waterfront, attempted to take over an existing deal negotiated by Blue Harvest Fisheries for a number of Carlos Rafael’s groundfish vessels, Blue Harvest CEO Keith Decker told The Standard-Times in December.
However, since then BASE has withdrawn their bid on the vessels, and Blue Harvest Fisheries’ original deal is back in place, according to both BASE and Decker.
The fight is an important one as New Bedford is trying to keep the fishing and scallop boats, as well as their federal permits, in the city. Though both entities have pledged to do that, Blue Harvest would consolidate ownership and BASE has said it would resell the boats to individual owners.
In a press release sent out on Thursday, BASE said, “Unfortunately the folks that encouraged BASE to move forward have now withdrawn their commitments, due to Blue Harvest’s litigation.”
Blue Harvest filed a civil suit against Carlos Rafael and the fishing corporations associated with his fishing vessels on December 23, after BASE had exercised their Right of First Refusal to their purchase, and listed BASE as an interested party in the suit, according to court documents.