Video shows a floating power plant, not a 'HAARP ship' in Spain

What is the claim? 

A video of a large ship with multiple antenna-like structures sailing on the sea is widely circulating on social media, claiming that it shows a "HAARP Ship" spotted off the coast of Spain before the recent flash floods that affected several parts of the country on October 29, 2024.

At least 217 people have died in the catastrophic floods in Spain caused by torrential rain that brought a year's worth of rainfall in eight hours in parts of Valencia, according to meteorologists. The floods have caused substantial damage, and rescue operations are underway to find the survivors.  

One such Instagram post featured the viral clip with the caption, "This ship was spotted off the coast of Spain around the time of the flash floods that killed over 200 people in Valencia." The overlaid text on the video reads, "HAARP SHIP SPOTTED OFF THE COAST OF SPAIN AROUND THE TIME OF THE FLASH FLOODS!"

The post implies that floods were artificially created by the HAARP facility (High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program), which conspiracy theorists believe is responsible for natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, and tropical storms, through weather manipulation.

The clip is also being shared on Facebook and X (formerly Twitter) with similar claims, and the archived links to those can be found here, here, and here.

Screenshot of viral posts circulating on social media. (Source: X/Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts) 

However, HAARP is not capable of weather manipulation on a scale that would cause such flooding, and the video shows a floating power ship owned and operated by the energy company Karpowership, that was in Spain for refueling in September 2024. It is not a HAARP facility. 

What did we find? 

A reverse image search of the viral clip led us to a TikTok video (archived here) posted by the account "restaurantepuntomarino," which featured the same footage. The post was tagged with the location "Municipality of Las Palmas," a city in Spain's Canary Islands, located roughly 2,000 kilometers from Valencia.

Logically Facts examined both the viral clip and the TikTok video and found the name "Karadeniz Powership Onur Sultan" written on the ship. This floating power plant is owned and operated by Karpowership, an energy company within the Karadeniz Energy Group based in Istanbul, Turkey. These power ships are designed to generate electricity in under 30 days, offering a quick, temporary solution for immediate energy demands without requiring permanent infrastructure. 

A comparison between the viral clip and the Karadeniz Powership Onur Sultan ship. (Source: Instagram/vesselefinder.com/Screenshot) 

Several local media outlets, including Canarias7, reported on the arrival of Karadeniz Powership Onur Sultan into Spain on September 27, 2024. The report noted that the Liberian-flagged vessel was in Las Palmas for refueling and restocking, where it anchored for a week while awaiting its next contract. The report also included a similar image of the ship seen in the viral clip.

Additionally, we found that the ship is now located in the Sea of Marmara, having arrived in Tuzla, Turkey, on October 16, 2024, prior to the flash floods in Spain.

Logically Facts has also contacted Karpowership for confirmation and will update the check when we receive a response.

HAARP is a research facility in Alaska managed by the University of Alaska Fairbanks that studies the ionosphere. It is important to note that the HAARP facility is only located in Alaska; there are no other locations. A detailed article on this by Logically Facts can be read here. 

Moreover, there are no official or credible news reports suggesting that HAARP is involved or associated with floating ships, as claimed in the viral post. It has been widely reported that the floods in Spain were caused by torrential rains.

Several conspiratorial claims about HAARP have been made online in the past; fact-checks written by Logically Facts can be read here, here, and here.

The verdict 

The video shows a floating power plant, Karpowership, docked in Spain for refueling in September 2024. It is unrelated to the recent flash floods that occurred in Spain.