Year-long salvage plan for Concordia

The American company Titan Salvage won the bid to remove the ship, which struck a reef off the tourist-dependent island of Giglio on 13 January after the captain veered off course.

Thirty-two passengers and crew died during the evacuation of the ship. Two of those remain missing.

The salvage plan, which still needs approval by Italian authorities, is to remove the ship in one piece and tow it to an Italian port, Costa said.

Workers completed the removal of fuel from the vessel last month and Costa said environmental protection will be a “top priority”, given the surrounding fishing grounds and dolphin sanctuary.

Islanders have expressed concern that the ship’s presence and salvage work will disrupt tourism, Giglio’s main economic driver.

“As was the case with the removal of the fuel, we have sought to identify the best solution to safeguard the island, its marine environment and tourism,” Costa CEO Pier Luigi Foschi said in a statement.

Titan Salvage, based in Florida, has performed more than 350 salvage and wreck removal projects since 1980, according to its website. It will join forces with Microperi, an Italian marine contractor that specialises in underwater construction and engineering. Titan was one of six companies bidding for the salvage job.

Salvage crews and their equipment will be based at the nearby port of Civitavecchia in a move aimed at minimising the impact on Giglio’s port activities, Costa said.

Costa Concordia’s captain, Francesco Schettino, is accused of abandoning the ship in the middle of a confused evacuation that saw passengers and crew members jump into the water and swim to shore after the ship’s tilt made it impossible to lower lifeboats.

Schettino, who is under house arrest and denies wrongdoing, faces possible charges of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship. Other top officers and Costa officials also face possible charges.