Shanghai Salvage is negotiating with insurers for the contract to remove the wreck of the stricken containership SSL Kolkata off the coast of India.

The state-owned salvage company’s proposal involves teaming up with a European partner, understood to be Dutch firm Smit Salvage.

Smit was appointed for the initial emergency-response Lloyd’s Open Form (LOF) contract and has equipment on site that was used in removing pollutants from the vessel.