The two agencies recently joined as investors of this venture that promises to serve the local farming industry.
Arctic Circle Air president Anthony M. Pellegrino said CDA and MPLT are investing $1.1 million: $600,000 from CDA and $500,000 — $250,000 in stock and $250,000 in loan — from MPLT.
“We’re very motivated, encouraged, and grateful that they see the value of the project,” Pellegrino told Variety yesterday.
With Arctic Circle Air, he said the local farming industry will finally be able to tap into the Guam market that imports $4.4 million in fruits and vegetables and about $800,000 of pork a month.
The new business also looks into moving products and even U.S. mail across Micronesia.
Pellegrino said they will be dealing directly with farmers and offer them any assistance they need in order to grow the crops that will be sold on Guam or elsewhere.
Currently, local farmers could not compete due to the high cost of freight.
With Arctic Circle Air, freight cost will be reduced by about 50 percent.
The farmers, he said, have the land and the know-how but they don’t have the motivation and the assurance that there’ll be buyers of their produce.
He said it all changes with the arrival of Arctic Circle Air.
“We have already talked to the farmers. All they need to do is sign the contract,” he said.
He, however, told the farmers to defer signing the contract pending the arrival of the plane.
“We’re timing everything,” he said.
Once everything’s ready, he said there’ll be warehouses on Saipan, Tinian, Rota, and Guam where the farmers can bring their produce.
He said they’ll be meeting with farmers on Rota this weekend to find out how much they can produce.
Artic Circle Air is an airline company based in Alaska that Pellegrino’s new corporation acquired recently. “We bought an airline company; we are not forming one. We bought all its assets,” he said.
The aircraft that came with the acquisition of the business has a 1,000 lbs. capacity and will be used to ply shorter routes.
The bigger plane, with a capacity of 2,500 lbs will be coming from England.
He also clarified that they are not going into the passenger business.
Pellegrino said they’re looking at commencing operations by Jan. 1, 2012.
Interested farmers and investors may contact him at 287-8310 or email [email protected].
