Salvage team dives deep to recover lost treasures

LONDON - Salvage expert SubSea Resources has started recovering copper from its first project, a wreck at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of northern Spain.

The target is the Francois Vieljeux, which sank in a storm in 1979 while on its way from Tanzania to northern Europe.

Its cargo included 5500 tonnes of copper and 700 tonnes of zinc.

SubSea expects to be able to recover about 80 per cent of this, worth about £17.3 million ($50.25 million), by the end of this month.

Mark Gleave, the group's managing director, said: "That the method we have developed is now proven to work is fantastic for SubSea. With proven technology and ability in place, the company is confident the recovery procedure can be repeated".

The shipwrecks SubSea targets are usually owned by the financial companies that insured them. It either buys the rights to the booty on board or does a deal with the insurer for a percentage of the sale value.

Over the past 20 years it has built a database of more than 12,000 wrecks. Prime targets are identified according to cargo and ease of salvage operation.

The recovery is undertaken by the Geomaster, a 117m vessel which carries the remotely operated grab used to recover the cargo from within the shipwreck.

SubSea's technology enables it to go after wrecks lying up to 6000m below the sea surface.

Its next project will be a mail ship with 20,000 ounces of gold worth £5 million ($14.5 million) on board.

- INDEPENDENT