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With pleasure we announce that, the wreck removal of the ‘Tricolor’ has now been  successfully completed. 
With a constant focus on safety and environment everyone involved in the removal operation have managed to prevent danger and further pollution. Last month all large sections of the ‘Tricolor’ wreck had been removed. After this the salvage team focussed on removing the remaining debris and wrecked cargo. 

Review
On 14 December 2002 the car carrier ‘Tricolor’ and the container vessel ‘Kariba’ collided in the English Channel within the French EEZ. The ‘Tricolor’ capsized and sank within 30 minutes. A salvage team from SMIT Salvage BV was called upon to recover bunker and lube oil from the vessel, which operation was completed in February 2003. Meanwhile, the ‘Tricolor’ had been declared a total loss and the French authorities had ordered it to be removed. In April 2003  the contract to remove the ‘Tricolor’ was awarded to the ‘Combinatie Berging Tricolor’. In order to remove the 190 m ‘Tricolor’, the vessel had to be cut into 9 pieces. This extraordinary operation started in July 2003. In the same month the first two cuts were successfully completed. The lifting of the more than 3000 tonnes sections took place in August. The sections were delivered to a scrap yard in Zeebrugge in Belgium. The third, fourth and fifth sections were cut and delivered by the end of August and fall.
In October the salvage operation had to be halted due to the beginning of the winter. In the spring of 2004 the operation resumed and it is now fully completed as confirmed by the French authorities.

The salvage of the TRICOLOR is being carried out by the ’Combinatie Berging Tricolor’, a consortium consisting of: SMIT Salvage B.V., Scaldis Salvage & Marine Contractors N.V., URS Salvage & Maritime Contracting N.V., and Multraship Salvage B.V. The salvage contract was awarded to the consortium by Wilh. Wilhelmsen and Gard Services.

For more details please contact:

Combinatie Berging Tricolor
Claudia van Andel
Public Relations Manager CBT
Tel: + 31 10 454 96 64
Mobile: + 31 6 513 31 272
E-mail: c.v.andel@smit.com

Wilh. Wilhelmsen
Hans Chr. Bangsmoen  
Senior Vice President Public Affairs 
Tel: + 47 67 58 43 30 
Mobile: + 47 90 92 48 47 
E-mail: hans.c.bangsmoen@ww-group.com 

Ivar Brynildsen
Claims Manager
Tel: + 47 67 58 42 12
Mobile: + 47 97 51 34 17 
E-mail: ivar.brynildsen@ww-group.com

GARD AS
Christen Guddal
Vice President
Tel: + 47 37 01 91 00
Mobile: + 47 97 55 92 95
E-mail: christen.guddal@gard.no