AMSTERDAM, July 31 (Reuters) - A burning car carrier off the Dutch coast has been towed to a new location away from shipping lanes as part of an operation to salvage the ship, the Dutch public works and water management ministry and local media said on Monday. The freighter, which was travelling from Germany to Egypt when the blaze broke out on July 26, was towed to a location north of the Dutch islands Ameland and Schiermonnikoog, the Rijkswaterstaat ministry said in a statement. A Rijkswaterstaat spokeswoman told the Dutch ANP press agency that at the new temporary location, the ship would be further removed from shipping routes and more sheltered from wind. Dutch Coastguard/Handout via REUTERSThe relocation is an intermediate step in the difficult salvage operation, the spokeswoman said. The company declined to say anything about the car brands, including whether they included any cars from Japanese manufacturers.

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Persons: Shoei, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Robert Birsel, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Panamanian, Fremantle Highway, Dutch ANP, Dutch Coastguard, Ship, Thomson Locations: AMSTERDAM, Germany, Egypt, Dutch, Netherlands