Electricity and water service charges for fishermen will be reduced by up to 57%, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced during a visit to Marsaxlokk on Friday.

Full-time and part-time fishermen operating vessels registered under the MFA and MFB categories will benefit from a 55% reduction in electricity service charges and a 57% reduction in water service charges.

Electricity charges for other vessels registered under the MFC category will meanwhile be reduced by 17%.

The reductions apply to charges linked to the use of electricity and water service pillars by fishing vessels.

Abela announced the measures following an informal meeting with fishermen in Marsaxlokk. He was accompanied by Permanent Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Supply Sharlo Camilleri and Fisheries and Aquaculture Director General Bjorn Azzopardi.

The Prime Minister said the reductions were intended to ease the operational costs faced by fishermen and provide improved conditions for them to continue working and investing in their businesses.

The government also plans to begin discussions with fishermen's organisations over the future of an abandoned building at Xatt is-Sajjieda.

According to the Office of the Prime Minister, the building would be transferred to the Malta Food Agency and converted into a facility serving the fishing sector. The proposed development would include cold-storage facilities for fishermen.

The government said the project would seek to address the practical needs of the sector while supporting the competitiveness and sustainability of Malta's fishing industry.

During the Marsaxlokk visit, Abela was also accompanied by Local Government and Public Works Minister Alison Zerafa Civelli.

The Prime Minister visited the local council building and met Mayor Steven Grech and other councillors to discuss the locality's needs and priorities.