Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. detailed in a recent press release that it may have found the resting place of a valuable cargo spread among five different 20th century shipwrecks in the Atlantic Ocean. Although it is only speculated that the bullion and other gold and silver material will be discovered with the wrecks, the company says it has completed reconnaissance with an ROV.
Odyssey CEO Mark Gordon said in this release that the company will use data taken from a single 30-day period to form a possible recovery plan. Together, the ships make up the work site known as the Olympus Project that fits into the company's previous history of excavating shipwrecks from different eras. Past findings for Odyssey include the 1744 British ship the HMS Victory, discovered near the Channel Islands, and a 1917 steamer, the SS Mantola, found in the North Atlantic.
While the company has suffered low stock values in recent years, Gordon said that tackling the ships en masse will help assess the different vessels as Odyssey looks at ways to extract the cargo.
"Targeting multiple shipwreck targets believed to be carrying bullion and specie and located in a relatively compact geographic area allows us to spread the risk and recovery expenses over the whole project," he said in the statement. "This approach also allows us to include other shipwrecks that may not be economically feasible on a stand-alone basis."
Part of the effort will involve a ship managed by the company called the Odyssey Explorer, from which the crew can prepare for expeditions and test equipment.
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