The illegal drugs seized on board the MV Verila at Foynes harbour in Co Limerick have been transferred to an unspecified location in Dublin for analysis.
Some 300kg of cocaine worth an estimated €21 million were found on board the Maltese-registered bulk carrier when it docked in the Shannon Estuary on Tuesday morning.
The ship remains detained in the Limerick port under Customs legislation and a search by specialised Revenue teams, supported by drug detecting dog Harley, is continuing.
Investigating gardaí have already spoken to some of the 18-strong crew during voluntary interviews on board the ship.
No arrests have been made so far.
The ship was built in 2022 at the Jiangsu Yangzijiang shipyard in China and is owned by a company called Verila Navigation Limited, based in Valetta in Malta.
The maritime app Marine Traffic gives its current value as $24m (€22m).
