By
Rebecca Gibson |
Titan-Micoperi consortium has begun an extensive salvage operation to remove Costa Cruises’ stricken Costa Concordia from the coast of Giglio Island following approval from Italy’s Civil Protection Authority.
Preliminary work was completed on 15 September, while the parbuckling operation began at 9am local time on 16 September as wind and wave conditions returned to an appropriate level after an overnight storm.
During the parbuckling operation, which is expected to last between ten and 12 hours, the 114,000 gt cruise ship will be gradually removed from the rocks and rotated 65 degrees to a vertical position. According to Costa’s current estimates, the total cost of the salvage will be more than €600 million.
Led by senior salvage master Captain Nick Sloane, an 11-strong team – which consists of remotely operated vehicle pilots, strand jack, ballast, computer and design engineers – will operate all systems and monitor progress from a separate barge located near Concordia’s bow. Using information from five TV cameras and microphones on Concordia’s highest deck, engineers will make adjustments according to the twist and torsion of the ship. An onshore salvage room will also monitor conditions and provide any further assistance if required.
Using a hydraulic cable-pulling mechanism, the salvage team will pull steel chains attached to Concordia’s offshore side and dislodge the hull from the two underwater granite reefs, before beginning a gradual rotation process. As the 11 sponsons – large hollow steel boxes manufactured by Italian yard Fincantieri – attached to the vessel’s offshore side reach sea level, they will fill with water and provide additional leverage during the rotation process.
Once upright, the ship will rest on a 30 metre-deep artificial seabed, which consists of six steel platforms supported by pillars and ballast bags filled with 18,000 tonnes of cement. This will enable the team to examine the extent of the damage and weld additional sponsons to the ship’s starboard side, which has been submerged and inaccessible for twenty months.
Following a stabilisation operation, engineers will use a pneumatic system to empty the sponsons of water and use them as buoyancy aids when Conocordia is refloated and moved from Giglio next spring. Concordia is likely to be taken to Piombino, a nearby mainland port that has served as a staging headquarters for some of the salvage work.