KARACHI: Pakistan is close to striking a deal with the EU importers to ship its first consignment in last six years to the world’s largest fisheries market, exporters said on Saturday.

The European Union (EU) lifted its six-year ban on Pakistan’s seafood into its market by reenlisting two companies M/s A G Fisheries (Pvt) Ltd and M/s Akhlaq Enterprises (Pvt) Ltd.

Pakistan has become eligible to export seafood to the 27-nation bloc from March 12 this year. The country’s main trade with the EU is expected to resume in shrimp species, squid fish and cuttlefish, exporters said. “We are in touch with the EU importers as our negotiations have matured for the first shipment of seafood to the world’s major market,” Akhlaq Enterprises CEO Akhlaq Hussain Abedi told Business Recorder.

He said the just reenrolled companies are facing certain problems for being apart from the EU since 2007, adding that the export offers are now growing for them to capitalise on the European seafood appeal. “Dubai and China have become our long-lasting and major markets for shrimp, squid fish and cuttlefish with lucrative price offers,” Abedi said, adding that both exporting companies are waiting to begin shipments to their new destination in the hope for “viable price difference”.

He said Pakistan abounds in a number of species which the world markets have great appeal. These include pink and brown shrimps, squid fish and cuttlefish.

“The first shipment is expected of squid fish, cuttlefish and shrimp species of about 27 tons to the EU,” he said. The EU should now offer at least 25 cents higher on per kg of seafood as compared to the offers by Middle East and Chinese markets. He said the EU fisheries delegations had expressed satisfaction over Pakistani companies which it had just allowed to do trade in its 27-nation bloc.

Pakistan exported over $300 million of seafood particularly to China, Egypt, Far East and Middle East during last fiscal year, according to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics.