Scrap pirates
How historical ships are being plundered long after their final voyage
A wake-up call
By the end of May 2023, a similar headline to this article had started appearing in social media and international news: the wrecks of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse, historical vessels which served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War as part of naval squadron Force Z, had been desecrated and looted by illegal scavengers.
The perpetrator was the Chuan Hong 68, a repurposed Chinese bulk carrier which had been equipped with high-end dredging equipment, such as hydraulic cranes and claws, turning the vessel into a multipurpose platform with deep bottom dredging capabilities. From December 2022 until 2023, the vessel roamed freely and undetected, carrying out numerous illegal salvage operations on historical wrecks. In many cases, the Chuan Hong 68 floated over the wreck for days, using its cranes to destroy and grab the metal of the warships.
The vessel was already renowned for her operations in terms of illegal salvaging of historical shipwrecks. Some sources indicate that these activities had spanned a period of ten years, with the Chuan Hong 68 being involved in the desecration and looting of other historical shipwrecks such as Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) Sagari, Hiyoshi Maru and Katori Maru in 2017, and IJN Haguro in 2022.
Malaysian authorities detained the vessel in May 2023 under the suspicion of illegal looting of historical shipwrecks, including HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse. It was boarded and inspected by the Malaysian coast guard, who found numerous pieces of evidence such as cannons and ammunition linked to the Royal Navy shipwrecks. The crew was taken ashore to be interrogated, but when the authorities returned to the vessel, they realised that the Chuan Hong 68 had escaped.
The vessel was once again detained in July 2024. Malaysian authorities held and questioned the crew, but for numerous port and documentation violations rather than the previous episodes of illegal salvaging. The vessel was later released, and is still sailing freely today. At the time of writing, the Chuan Hong 68 was last seen off the coast of South Africa.
The looting of the HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse caused great sorrow to the families of those served. Military authorities of the Royal Navy, as well as professionals from the underwater archaeology sector, expressed their disgust and concern with the situation.
These feelings were mixed with the sudden realisation that the historical shipwrecks which can be found all around the world, heralds of the history of many nations and final resting place for many souls, were no longer sacred. Of course, occasional looting and artefact hunting have always been unresolved challenges faced by the corresponding authorities. However, these scrap scavengers pose a new and more destructive threat to these historical wrecks.
Despite the great commotion which the Chuan Hong 68 caused, this has been an ongoing problem for more than ten years. It does not only involve the Chuan Hong 68, but also a complex framework involving private and public actors, national and international interests, and great power competition. The action taken against these scavengers, however, is usually done so from a retrospective stance, when it is already too late. This is the reason why vessels like the Chuan Hong 68 are still operating freely.
Most of the existing legislation has certain problems when it comes to application in international waters, or waters belonging to another country. These regulations are focused on the designation and importance of the wrecks, but the lack of an international framework to face and prosecute illegal salvaging operations makes any progress extremely challenging.
Opportunistic plundering
Dredging is a necessary practice in the maritime domain, as it enables the installation of infrastructure, the opening of sea lines and the cleaning of the seabed, among many other benefits. However, it is relatively easy to switch from a legal framework to an illegal one in a matter of seconds.
Automatic Identification System (AIS) manipulation and spoofing are common practices during this process, as it allows scavengers to act for several days over non-authorised shipwrecks without being monitored. Questionable manipulation of national and international law regarding prospecting and dredging operations in blue waters are some of the main alibis which these scavengers use to protect themselves.
In order to make this even more complicated, the vessels sometimes manipulate their International Maritime Organisation (IMO) numbers and other identifiable characteristics, sometimes sharing their IMO number with another vessel, changing their flag, or using modified AIS transponders which allow for more covert operations.
The scrap metal obtained from these shipwrecks, however, is worth the risk. Known as low-background steel, it comprises metal processed prior to the beginning of the nuclear era. The radioactivity levels of steel produced before 1945 is thousands of times lower than steel made today, making it extremely suitable for building high-end technology, such as laboratory or space exploration equipment, which requires the lowest level of radiation possible.
While common steel can be processed into low-background steel, it is extremely costly, which makes historical shipwrecks ‘natural sources’ of this valuable metal – free for the taking and with a revenue of more than ten times that of normal steel.
The inactivity of the local governments, the inefficient legislation and the complexity which surrounds the perpetrators of this plundering of historical shipwrecks presents a challenging scenario which has not yet been resolved. While numerous initiatives have taken place to try to enhance the protection of these historical wrecks, these ‘scrap pirates’ are still on the loose, enjoying legal loopholes and unpolished frameworks.
A call to action is needed. The desecration of these shipwrecks implies an irreparable loss of cultural heritage and the destruction of the final resting places of people who gave their lives for their countries. However, it also represents the active removal of common history and heritage, represented by these shipwrecks, that links countries together.
Santiago José del Castillo Toquero holds a BA in History from the University of Valladolid and an MA in Military History from the University of Santiago de Compostela. Since 2023, he has been working at ESS Maritime, the only Dutch maritime security company. In his role as Naval Liaison of the company, he has been exposed to the challenges and dynamics, both public and private, of maritime security frameworks, from both a national and international perspective. He is Vice President of Public Diplomacy at the Spanish Chapter of the Youth Atlantic Treaty Association (YATA Spain/COAJE) and Co-Director of the Maritime Security blog ‘Blue Depths’.
To stay up to date with The Broadside, please subscribe or pledge your support!
What do you think about this article? Why not leave a comment below?