Odyssey Marine Exploration has applied to excavate two shipwrecks off the U.S. coast that may contain valuables.
TAMPA - Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc., a shipwreck excavation company, has applied for exclusive rights to excavate two wreck sites that it says may hold rich cargos of coins and pottery.
The Tampa company received approval Monday on one of the preliminary claims, filed in U.S. District Court in Tampa, and expects to be granted access to both shipwreck sites this week.
Odyssey executives say they believe they have found a 19th century steamship, which it has code-named Bavaria, that sank with a large cargo of coins. To preserve its potential treasure, the company will say only that it found the wreck in the Atlantic along the southeast coast of the United States, somewhere between Charleston and Daytona Beach.
While searching for the ship that it has given the alias Bavaria, Odyssey said the crew found another ship about 40 miles off the northern coast of Florida that contained a large quantity of Chinese and English pottery, some dating back to the late 1700s or early 1800s.
If its claims in court are successful, Odyssey will be named temporary custodian of the site and granted exclusive access. Insurance companies, owners' descendants and others may lay claim to the items found on the ship, if they could prove that they had not abandoned ownership interest, but Odyssey would be in line to get a major share as a salvage award.
"Based on legal precedents, we would expect to receive at least 90 percent of the value of the recovered artifacts," said Odyssey co-founder Greg Stemm.
Company officials said they would not comment on the expected value of the Bavaria cargo or on the history behind it until they have confirmed its identity.
While the Bavaria contains many of the characteristics expected of the ship Odyssey was looking for, including boilers and coal, the company will not be able to determine the age and identity of the ship until it does further examination. What appears to be modern trash was found on the ship, but Stemm said this is not unusual in a highly traveled sea lane.
"The story behind this shipwreck is fascinating," Stemm said. "We are already in discussions for sale of media rights to the story and production of a documentary with major media outlets."
Odyssey said it already has spent more than $1-million searching for and surveying the sites. Stemm expects the excavation to cost between $500,000 and $2-million. The funds will be raised by issuing more debt or stock or through project-specific financing. Excavation could begin as early as August, depending on the company's ability to raise the funds.
Odyssey, which went public in 1997, has boasted of other discoveries but has not yet recovered or tried to lay claim to items from any of the ships it has found. The company's Web site says that shipwreck excavation is "extremely speculative and of exceptionally high risk."
"If the shareholders trust the company management, they should be able to rely on the accuracy of all information that is released," Stemm said. "If they don't trust the management, they shouldn't invest in the company. Trust is everything."
Odyssey, which reported no revenues for fiscal year 2002, closed Monday at $1.55, down 5 cents.
Reprinted with permission.
Copyright© 2003 St. Petersburg Times