Odyssey Marine Expl (AMEX:OMR)
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Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. (AMEX: OMR), a leader in the field of
deep-ocean shipwreck exploration, provided an operations update today.
Odyssey's primary marine operations focus during the summer and early
fall of 2006 was the survey, mapping and inspection of seven “Tripoli”
search blocks in the Company’s “Atlas”
shipwreck search project. These search blocks overlapped with other
"Atlas" targets, but were designed to completely cover the area believed
to hold the target shipwreck code-named "Tripoli." The Company has
completed the side-scan survey phase of the seven blocks and has nine
remaining anomalies that require further inspection with a remotely
operated vehicle (ROV).
The Company’s new vessel has achieved its
scheduled 2006 objectives in the “Atlas/Tripoli”
search area and is currently in port completing minor repairs needed to
meet Class requirements. The ship is scheduled to depart for new
projects shortly. The Odyssey Explorer has completed planned dry
dock inspection, maintenance and repairs, but is scheduled to remain in
port until mid-December to complete projects necessary for five-year
inspection requirements. The Odyssey Explorer is then scheduled
to inspect the nine new targets which were located during the last phase
of operations in the “Atlas/Tripoli”
search area, before sailing to the Mediterranean to begin operations
there. While the weather during the upcoming weeks will be marginal at
best, those targets will only require between two and three days of
operations.
The Company has three projects in the Mediterranean on its winter/spring
operations schedule, including HMS Sussex.
About the “Atlas”
Project
The "Atlas" project is believed to be the most extensive shipwreck
search operation ever launched. A minimum of five high-value shipwrecks
are believed to be in the search area, which encompasses more than 5,000
square miles. Odyssey began search operations during the 2005 season and
resumed operations in April 2006.
During the 2006 season, work was concentrated in the seven search block
areas which encompass the “Atlas”
target of highest value, code-named “Tripoli.”
During 2005, much of the area was searched with high-resolution
side-scan sonar. During 2006, a second pass was completed which included
acoustic and magnetometer data-streams which helped Odyssey create a
larger database of information. Overlaying all three layers provided an
extremely precise, high-resolution map of the seven search blocks.
Once targets of interest were logged, additional high-resolution imagery
and magnetometer surveys were utilized to further classify and map
targets before ROVs were deployed to visually inspect and recover any
artifacts deemed necessary for identification.
During the entire 2006 survey period, at least two ships were mobilized
to engage in this search operation, and during part of the summer, three
ships were utilized.
Following is a summary of the operations conducted in the
"Atlas/Tripoli" search area:
Anomalies detected: 1,873
Anomalies selected for further inspections: 1,017
Anomalies remaining to be inspected with an ROV: 9
Shipwrecks located: 161
Modern/20th Century Shipwrecks: 124
19th Century Shipwrecks: 25
17th - 18th Century Shipwrecks: 12
Odyssey filed an Admiralty arrest in the U.S. District Court for the
Middle District of Florida in September. On October 30, 2006, the U.S.
District Court granted the Company's Motion for Preliminary Injunction
appointing Odyssey as the exclusive finder-in-possession of the
shipwrecked vessel, and prohibiting any interference with Odyssey's
intended excavation of the site, which is believed to be the remains of
a 17th century merchant vessel located outside the territorial waters of
any country. However, until further ROV inspections and a preliminary
archaeological excavation are completed on the arrested shipwreck site,
the Company is not prepared to confirm the identity or potential value
of the shipwreck.
About the Sussex Project
The Sussex was an 80-gun English warship lost in a severe storm
in the western Mediterranean in 1694. Research suggests the Sussex
was carrying a large cargo of coins when she sank. Odyssey believes it
has located the shipwreck of HMS Sussex and has signed an
exclusive partnering agreement the Government of the United Kingdom for
the archaeological excavation of the shipwreck.
In late 2005 and early 2006, Odyssey completed to the satisfaction of
the Government of the United Kingdom all work detailed in Phase 1A of
the Sussex archaeological project plan. The Company has also
completed a portion of Phase 1B. (A public version of the project plan
is available at www.shipwreck.net/sussexpp.html)
The Company temporarily halted operations on the project at the request
of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs while issues relative to the
archaeological plan for excavation of the site, territorial and cultural
resource management issues were negotiated.
Odyssey submitted an archaeological plan to the Spanish Ministry of
Foreign Affairs which addressed questions raised by the Government of
the Autonomous Region of Andalucia in reference to the ongoing HMS Sussex
project. As part of this proposed plan, Odyssey agreed with the British
Government to undertake additional survey operations in the area and to
provide Spain with a detailed assessment of the region's underwater
cultural heritage in deep water, as well as assistance in developing a
plan for managing and protecting those resources.
Odyssey is working closely with the offices of the Embassy of the United
Kingdom and the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence to address the
final Andalucían issues relating to site
mapping, positional information, and formalization of the submission
plan through the project archaeologists. The Company anticipates these
issues will be resolved before the end of the year.
Throughout the duration of this complicated multi-national situation,
the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the United Kingdom Foreign and
Commonwealth Office and Ministry of Defence, the United States
Department of State, and representatives of the Autonomous Region of
Andalucia, have all contributed resources and attention to solving a
complex series of issues relating to the Sussex project. While it
has taken longer to resolve these issues than anticipated, Odyssey
believes the results will translate to goodwill between all parties and
serve to provide a platform for future cooperation in underwater
exploration and management of deep-ocean cultural heritage.
In other news, Odyssey has received $ 1,153,000 as the complete
insurance settlement on the Company’s claim
for damages and business interruption incurred by Odyssey’s
Shipwreck & Treasure Adventure in New Orleans due to Hurricane
Katrina in August 2005. In addition, on November 22, 2006, the Company
raised $1.5 Million through the issuance of 500,000 shares of common
stock. Management believes this additional cash, cash flow from
operations, and the potential exercise of warrants or other financing
activities will be sufficient to meet the Company’s
financial requirements for the planned winter and spring operating
seasons.
About Odyssey Marine Exploration
Odyssey Marine Exploration is an American Stock Exchange Company (OMR)
with several shipwreck projects in various stages of development
throughout the world. Additional information about Odyssey, its
projects, methodologies and technologies, is available at www.shipwreck.net.
In order to protect the identities of the targets of planned search
operations, Odyssey may not disclose specific information relating to
ship operations and search targets until the Company has located the
targeted shipwreck or shipwrecks and determined a course of action to
protect its property rights, which may include recovery of artifacts and
transport to an appropriate jurisdiction.
For additional information, please contact Laura Lionetti Barton at
813-876-1776 ext 2562.
Odyssey Marine Exploration believes the information set forth in this
press release may include "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section
27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act
of 1934. Certain factors that could cause results to differ materially
from those projected in the forward-looking statements are set forth in
"Risk Factors," and "Business" in the Company's annual report on Form
10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005, which has been filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc. (AMEX: OMR), a leader in the field
of deep-ocean shipwreck exploration, provided an operations update
today.
Odyssey's primary marine operations focus during the summer and
early fall of 2006 was the survey, mapping and inspection of seven
"Tripoli" search blocks in the Company's "Atlas" shipwreck search
project. These search blocks overlapped with other "Atlas" targets,
but were designed to completely cover the area believed to hold the
target shipwreck code-named "Tripoli." The Company has completed the
side-scan survey phase of the seven blocks and has nine remaining
anomalies that require further inspection with a remotely operated
vehicle (ROV).
The Company's new vessel has achieved its scheduled 2006
objectives in the "Atlas/Tripoli" search area and is currently in port
completing minor repairs needed to meet Class requirements. The ship
is scheduled to depart for new projects shortly. The Odyssey Explorer
has completed planned dry dock inspection, maintenance and repairs,
but is scheduled to remain in port until mid-December to complete
projects necessary for five-year inspection requirements. The Odyssey
Explorer is then scheduled to inspect the nine new targets which were
located during the last phase of operations in the "Atlas/Tripoli"
search area, before sailing to the Mediterranean to begin operations
there. While the weather during the upcoming weeks will be marginal at
best, those targets will only require between two and three days of
operations.
The Company has three projects in the Mediterranean on its
winter/spring operations schedule, including HMS Sussex.
About the "Atlas" Project
The "Atlas" project is believed to be the most extensive shipwreck
search operation ever launched. A minimum of five high-value
shipwrecks are believed to be in the search area, which encompasses
more than 5,000 square miles. Odyssey began search operations during
the 2005 season and resumed operations in April 2006.
During the 2006 season, work was concentrated in the seven search
block areas which encompass the "Atlas" target of highest value,
code-named "Tripoli." During 2005, much of the area was searched with
high-resolution side-scan sonar. During 2006, a second pass was
completed which included acoustic and magnetometer data-streams which
helped Odyssey create a larger database of information. Overlaying all
three layers provided an extremely precise, high-resolution map of the
seven search blocks.
Once targets of interest were logged, additional high-resolution
imagery and magnetometer surveys were utilized to further classify and
map targets before ROVs were deployed to visually inspect and recover
any artifacts deemed necessary for identification.
During the entire 2006 survey period, at least two ships were
mobilized to engage in this search operation, and during part of the
summer, three ships were utilized.
Following is a summary of the operations conducted in the
"Atlas/Tripoli" search area:
-- Anomalies detected: 1,873
-- Anomalies selected for further inspections: 1,017
-- Anomalies remaining to be inspected with an ROV: 9
-- Shipwrecks located: 161
-- Modern/20th Century Shipwrecks: 124
-- 19th Century Shipwrecks: 25
-- 17th - 18th Century Shipwrecks: 12
Odyssey filed an Admiralty arrest in the U.S. District Court for
the Middle District of Florida in September. On October 30, 2006, the
U.S. District Court granted the Company's Motion for Preliminary
Injunction appointing Odyssey as the exclusive finder-in-possession of
the shipwrecked vessel, and prohibiting any interference with
Odyssey's intended excavation of the site, which is believed to be the
remains of a 17th century merchant vessel located outside the
territorial waters of any country. However, until further ROV
inspections and a preliminary archaeological excavation are completed
on the arrested shipwreck site, the Company is not prepared to confirm
the identity or potential value of the shipwreck.
About the Sussex Project
The Sussex was an 80-gun English warship lost in a severe storm in
the western Mediterranean in 1694. Research suggests the Sussex was
carrying a large cargo of coins when she sank. Odyssey believes it has
located the shipwreck of HMS Sussex and has signed an exclusive
partnering agreement the Government of the United Kingdom for the
archaeological excavation of the shipwreck.
In late 2005 and early 2006, Odyssey completed to the satisfaction
of the Government of the United Kingdom all work detailed in Phase 1A
of the Sussex archaeological project plan. The Company has also
completed a portion of Phase 1B. (A public version of the project plan
is available at www.shipwreck.net/sussexpp.html) The Company
temporarily halted operations on the project at the request of the
Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs while issues relative to the
archaeological plan for excavation of the site, territorial and
cultural resource management issues were negotiated.
Odyssey submitted an archaeological plan to the Spanish Ministry
of Foreign Affairs which addressed questions raised by the Government
of the Autonomous Region of Andalucia in reference to the ongoing HMS
Sussex project. As part of this proposed plan, Odyssey agreed with the
British Government to undertake additional survey operations in the
area and to provide Spain with a detailed assessment of the region's
underwater cultural heritage in deep water, as well as assistance in
developing a plan for managing and protecting those resources.
Odyssey is working closely with the offices of the Embassy of the
United Kingdom and the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence to address
the final Andalucian issues relating to site mapping, positional
information, and formalization of the submission plan through the
project archaeologists. The Company anticipates these issues will be
resolved before the end of the year.
Throughout the duration of this complicated multi-national
situation, the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the United Kingdom
Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Ministry of Defence, the United
States Department of State, and representatives of the Autonomous
Region of Andalucia, have all contributed resources and attention to
solving a complex series of issues relating to the Sussex project.
While it has taken longer to resolve these issues than anticipated,
Odyssey believes the results will translate to goodwill between all
parties and serve to provide a platform for future cooperation in
underwater exploration and management of deep-ocean cultural heritage.
In other news, Odyssey has received $ 1,153,000 as the complete
insurance settlement on the Company's claim for damages and business
interruption incurred by Odyssey's Shipwreck & Treasure Adventure in
New Orleans due to Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. In addition, on
November 22, 2006, the Company raised $1.5 Million through the
issuance of 500,000 shares of common stock. Management believes this
additional cash, cash flow from operations, and the potential exercise
of warrants or other financing activities will be sufficient to meet
the Company's financial requirements for the planned winter and spring
operating seasons.
About Odyssey Marine Exploration
Odyssey Marine Exploration is an American Stock Exchange Company
(OMR) with several shipwreck projects in various stages of development
throughout the world. Additional information about Odyssey, its
projects, methodologies and technologies, is available at
www.shipwreck.net.
In order to protect the identities of the targets of planned
search operations, Odyssey may not disclose specific information
relating to ship operations and search targets until the Company has
located the targeted shipwreck or shipwrecks and determined a course
of action to protect its property rights, which may include recovery
of artifacts and transport to an appropriate jurisdiction.
For additional information, please contact Laura Lionetti Barton
at 813-876-1776 ext 2562.
Odyssey Marine Exploration believes the information set forth in
this press release may include "forward-looking statements" within the
meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995,
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Act of 1934. Certain factors that could cause results to
differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking
statements are set forth in "Risk Factors," and "Business" in the
Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2005, which has been filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.