Costa Concordia raised, to be towed away for scrap

Luxury liner Costa Concordia that capsized more than two years ago off the Italian coast was successfully refloated Monday in preparation to be towed away for scrapping.

The wreck – which was resting on an under-sea platform for the past year - was raised without a hitch in one of the biggest maritime salvage operations in history.

Technicians were preparing to shift the Concordia some 30 meters and then anchor the massive cruise ship before ending the day's operations, AP reported.

The entire operation to remove the liner from the reef and float it to Genoa, Italy, where it will be scrapped, will cost a total of $2 billion, Costa Crociere SpA CEO Michael Tamm told reporters.

Towing is set to begin July 21.

The trip to Genoa, located about 320 kilometers away, is expected to take five days.

"The operation began well, but it will be completed only when we have finished the transport to Genoa," Italian Environment Minister Gian Luca Galletti.

The liner had been carrying over 4,200 people from 70 countries when it sank near the Tuscan holiday island of Giglio in January 2012, killing 32 people.

Concordia's Italian captain Francesco Schettino, is being tried in Tuscany on charges of manslaughter, causing the shipwreck and abandoning ship before all were evacuated.