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Fishing · Financial · Access

Quota lease cost

$34/kg

The cost of holding or leasing the right to catch a kilogram of lobster. Under individual transferable quota the entitlement itself is a tradeable asset, and its lease price is often the single largest cost in the operation.

Worked example · Quota lease $/kg · 4 yrs
Half of beach price $26 $30 $33 $34 2023 2024 2025 2026
Quota lease $/kg · 4 yrs
The benchmark

Quota lease prices can absorb a large share of the beach price in high-value rock lobster fisheries, making access the defining cost for many operators.

FRDC ↗
What it signals

Quota lease is the price of access, and it tends to track the beach price — so a strong market can be largely captured by quota owners rather than fishers. Tracking lease as a share of price shows how much of the value chain the catching sector actually retains.

Data required to calculate
Quota leased or heldkgLease cost$

Silo pulls each of these from the sources the operation already uses, and keeps the figure current automatically.

How to improve it
01

Time lease deals to the quieter end of the access market.

02

Weigh owning versus leasing quota against your cost of capital.

03

Only take on lease quota you can fish at a genuine margin.

Questions & answers

What is quota lease cost?

The cost of holding or leasing the right to catch a kilogram of lobster. Under individual transferable quota the entitlement itself is a tradeable asset, and its lease price is often the single largest cost in the operation.

What data do you need to calculate quota lease cost?

You need: Quota leased or held (kg), Lease cost ($). Silo pulls each of these from the sources the operation already uses and keeps the figure current automatically.

What is a good quota lease cost benchmark?

Quota lease prices can absorb a large share of the beach price in high-value rock lobster fisheries, making access the defining cost for many operators.

How do you improve quota lease cost?

Time lease deals to the quieter end of the access market. Weigh owning versus leasing quota against your cost of capital. Only take on lease quota you can fish at a genuine margin.

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