Crane ship nears end of Concordia salvage role

Written by Nick Blenkey
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Conquest MB 1 was used to place sponsons that now support the wreck

JULY 15, 2014 — The wreck of the Costa Concordia today remained stable and securely moored following yesterday’s refloating operation. After operations continued overnight, technicians worked to connect the last four chains and six cables as underwater preliminary activities related to the beginning of the last phase of the refloating operation progressed.

A major role in the salvage of the cruise ship has been played by the Conquest MB 1 crane ship owned by Dutch consortium Conquest Offshore, a joint venture between Concordia Offshore BV, Paul van Es Holding BV and Zwagerman Offshore Services BV.

The Conquest MB 1 is equipped with a 1,400 ton crane capable of 360 degree rotation and provides a 36 m x 136 m deck area rated at 20 ton/sq.m and has a working depth of only 3.5 m. It has been used to place the sponsons that are now supporting the wreck, keeping it afloat for the first time since the ship ran aground off Italy’s Giglio Island more than two and a half years ago.

The next major phase of the salvage project will be to tow the wreck to Genoa from Giglio for recycling and Conquest MB1 will remain nearby and ready to give any needed assistance during the tow.

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