Washington: A US-owned marine salvage company chosen to remove the wreck of the capsized Costa Concordia, the cruise ship that ran aground off the Italian coast in January, is predicting that the vessel will be ready for towing by early 2013.
Captain Richard Habib, the managing director of Titan Salvage, said the ship now lying on its side on rocky seabed near the port of Giglio island, will be back upright by the start of next year.
He said that once afloat, the wreckage would be towed to an Italian port for demolition, News 24 reports.
At least 30 people died after the Concordia slammed into a reef off Giglio on January 13, 2012.
The ship`s captain is currently under house arrest, and is being investigated for alleged manslaughter and abandoning ship during evacuation.
ANI
