Odyssey secures contracts

TAMPA — Odyssey Marine Exploration has secured salvage contracts from the owners of four deep-ocean shipwrecks with cargo estimated to be worth more than $230 million.

According to a release from the company, the ships were carrying “valuable commodities” when they sank, which Odyssey will attempt to recover. The contracts allow Odyssey to keep 90% of the net recovered cargo value from the shipwrecks, the release says. The names and locations of the shipwrecks were not disclosed.

Odyssey says there are additional shipwrecks that don't require salvage agreements that can be added to the multiyear commodity shipwreck program while its equipment is nearby. The publicly traded company (symbol: OMEX, recent price: $3.83) plans to begin work on the project as soon as the second quarter of 2013.