Sulpicio Lines has signed a contract with a salvage company to retrieve the toxic chemical cargo inside the capsized M/V Princess of the Stars.

In a text message to ABS-CBN News, Sulpicio Lines vice-president for marketing Jordan Go said that they have signed a $7.55-million contract with Titan Salvage Corporation to recover the chemical shipment owned by Del Monte Philippines and Bayer CropScience.

Go said the multi-million dollar deal between the company and Titan was signed between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. Thursday at Traders Hotel in Manila.

Sulpicio Lines was represented by the company's first vice-president Edgar Go, while commercial manager Amit Wahi came for Titan.

According to the contract, Titan will undertake the removal of the toxic cargo, which includes the endosulfan shipment of Del Monte and four different chemicals owned by Bayer.

Go added that the removal process of the chemicals would take 30 days, and before that there will be an initial mobilization period that could last two to three weeks.

During the initial mobilization period, equipment to be used in the salvaging of the chemicals, which will come from the United States and Singapore, will be set up.

Task Force Princess of the Stars chief and Transportation Undersecretary Elena Bautista was informed of the details after the contract signing, Go added.

Toxic cargo removal a 'priority'

"As we committed to the DOTC and Congress, we are proceeding with the priority removal of Del Monte and Bayer's misdeclared cargo without quibbling about the legalities. Our foremost concern is to defuse the environmental time bomb. After this, equally urgent will be the retrieval by divers of bodies of the victims still inside our ill-fated ship," Edgar Go said in a statement released Thursday evening.

Go said Sulpicio signed up Titan Salvage '"as soon as we could after completing a prudent assessment of its capability and salvage plans."

"We are also shouldering the high cost of extracting the toxic cargo despite our well-founded claim that Del Monte should pay for the cost of safely removing it from the waters of Romblon," he said, adding that "at the proper time and legal venue, we are confident the concerned parties will be made accountable for their actions."

"The DOTC, led by Task Force Princess head Undersecretary Ma. Elena Bautista, helped us evaluate and negotiate with Titan Salvage," he said.

The company also said Titan would also remove the remaining bunker oil in the ship simultaneously with the cargo removal. The final step, the statement said, would be the removal of the shipwreck from the waters off Romblon.

5 p.m. deadline

Earlier, the task force gave Sulpicio Lines until 5 p.m. to sign the contract with Titan Salvage.

Bautista said the government, who has been "gentle" on Sulpicio, can become "aggressive" on the company if the situation merits.

She added that if Sulpicio Lines failed to sign the contract by the deadline set by the task force, they could file a case against the company. With a report from Zen Hernandez, ABS-CBN News