World
16:44, 10-Jan-2018
Malaysia hires US firm to find MH370 in no find, no fee deal
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The Malaysian government has signed an agreement with a US-based firm to resume an underwater search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, the country's Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai said during a press conference on Wednesday.
The deal is based on a "no cure, no fee" principle, Lai said, explaining that if the firm can locate the debris field and black box within 90 days of the launch of the search, Malaysia will pay between 20 million US dollars and 70 million US dollars.
Seabed exploration firm Ocean Infinity is expected to begin the search on February 17, covering an area of 25,000 square km in the priority search area in the Southern Indian Ocean.
Azharuddin Abdul Rahman (2nd L), head of Malaysia's Civil Aviation Department, signs documents with Ocean Infinity CEO Oliver Plunkett (2nd R) during a signing ceremony at the Malaysian federal administrative center outside Kuala Lumpur, January 10, 2018. /VCG Photo
Azharuddin Abdul Rahman (2nd L), head of Malaysia's Civil Aviation Department, signs documents with Ocean Infinity CEO Oliver Plunkett (2nd R) during a signing ceremony at the Malaysian federal administrative center outside Kuala Lumpur, January 10, 2018. /VCG Photo
MH370 carrying 239 passengers and crew disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014.
The governments of Malaysia, Australia and China suspended the search operation in January 2017 after almost three years' efforts in a 120,000-square-km area in the Southern Indian Ocean failed to find any sign of the wreckage of the plane.
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