Colombia plans to salvage $20 billion in treasure from shipwreck

The San Jose, owned by the Spanish crown, was sunk by the British navy in 1708 near Cartagena in Colombia, with only a few of its crew of about 600 surviving, according to AFP .

The ship sank while loaded with treasures such as emeralds and about 200 tons of gold coins from the New World to the territory of King Philip V of Spain. Colombian authorities announced the discovery of the wreck in 2015. The wreck's current estimated value is about $20 billion.

Colombian Culture Minister Juan David Correa said an underwater robot would be deployed to salvage items from the ship.

According to Mr. Correa, between April and May, the robot will retrieve objects from the ship to study the method of salvaging the treasure. This process is expected to cost 4.5 million USD and the robot will operate at a depth of 600m to retrieve objects such as ceramics, pieces of wood "without changing or damaging the wreck."

World - Colombia plans to salvage $20 billion treasure from shipwreck — Images provided by Colombia show what appear to be gold coins under the wreck of the San Jose. (Photo: Colombian Government).

After three centuries submerged, most of the items on board have undergone "physical and chemical" changes and could decompose when pulled from the water, said Alexandra Chadid, a naval researcher.

However, the Colombian salvage operation has caused controversy because of the number of valuable archaeological and economic objects on board.

Spain claims the treasure is theirs because it was on board one of its ships. Meanwhile, the Qhara Qhara tribe of Bolivia says they should own the treasure because Spain forced the indigenous people to mine the precious metal.

The Colombian government wants to use the country's own resources to salvage the treasure and ensure it stays in Colombia.

Spain's ambassador to Colombia, Joaquin de Aristegui, said he had proposed to Colombia a "bilateral agreement" to protect the wreck.

The Qhara Qhara tribe has expressed a willingness to cooperate with the Colombian government and is currently only asking for the return of some items of spiritual significance from the ship. "We want our ancestors to rest in peace," they said.

Meanwhile, Colombia is still in a lawsuit with the US-based salvage company Sea Search Armada, which claims to have found the original wreck more than 40 years ago. The case is being heard at the Permanent Court of Arbitration of the United Nations. Sea Search Armada is seeking $10 billion, half of the wreck’s current estimated value.

Minh Hoa (reported by Thanh Nien and Dan Tri)

Source