Nodosa executes the shortening of the former Amada Isabel, which will fish tuna in the Solomon Islands

The Ecuadorian shipyard Maridueña, located south of the city of Guayaquil, delivered a freezer tuna seiner in 2010 of almost 57 metres in length by 10 metres in beam and baptized as José Armando.

The fishing boat has been part of the fleets of Piscantur and Empresa Atunera del Ecuador (Empatecsa) and was renamed four years ago as Amada Isabel.

Now, it has not only changed ownership but has had a complete makeover: it has lost about ten metres in length to be able to operate under the flag of the Solomon Islands, where a maximum of 50 metres is set, explained the shipping agent Antares Maritime Agency.

Lengthening works are relatively common in the fishing fleet, but the reverse process is rarer.

With the exception of the design of the stern, where the panga is located – an auxiliary vessel that helps deploy the purse seine net – the tuna boat looks like a radically different construction from the one that left the Maridueña facilities fifteen years ago.

She has changed her name to Solomon Amber, and her home port will be in Honiara. The new owner is the local shipowner National Fisheries Developments (NFD), founded in 1977 and belonging to one of the world's largest tuna conglomerates, Trimarine.

The Solomon Amber will have company: Solomon Emerald, Solomon Ruby, Solomon Pearl, Solomon Opal and Solomon Jade are the other vessels in the NFD fleet that fish in Solomon's national waters, all with that same limitation in length. Combined they have catches of more than 25,000 tonnes of tuna per year.