Story highlights Malaysian government, undersea search company sign deal for further exploration

Ocean Infinity could net up to $70 million should they find the plane; nothing if they don't

(CNN) The Malaysian government has awarded a "no-find, no-fee" contract to a private US-based tech company to resume the search for Malaysian Airlines flight 370, one of the most enduring aviation mysteries of the modern era.

Ocean Infinity will only receive payment if it's successful in finding the remains of the plane, which went missing in March 2014 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board.

The 90-day search will initially take place over an area of 25,000 square kilometers (just under 10,000 square miles) off Australia's west coast, to the northeast of the original search area.

The payment is on a sliding scale. If the debris field, cockpit voice recorder or flight recorder are discovered within the first 5,000 sq km (1930 sq mi) searched, Ocean Infinity will command a fee of $20 million, rising to $70 million if any of those items are found outside the initial 25,000 sq km area.

The agreement was signed by the Malaysian government and Ocean Infinity CEO Oliver Plunkett at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur Wednesday, attended by the families of some of the missing passengers. Australia led the initial search, after analysis showed the plane was most likely to have sunk to the bottom of the ocean off the coast of West Australia.

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