Capsized cruise ship liner Costa Concordia would be the first ship of its size to be salvaged using a process known as parbuckling. The 114,000-ton ship would first have to be pulled off the seabed. Then it would be rotated to big platforms which could be found some 30 meters under the water. The process entailed submerging some portions of the ship which had been left dry for months before the Costa Concordia could be lifted out of the sea, hopefully in one piece.
According to BBC News, the whole operation must be done very slowly so that the hull won't be damaged. Environmentalists had warned that toxic substances could leak out from the ship to the surrounding sea if the operation goes wrong.
The Civil Protection Agency of Italy had pegged the original cost of the salvage efforts to USD 400 million. However, agency head Franco Gabriele increased the figure in January to USD 530 million. CBC News reported that the most recent figures for the operation was already USD 825 million. The cost could increase further by the time the salvaging efforts would be completed, BBC News reported.
Join the Conversation