Spanish authorities have seized 720 kilogrammes of cocaine off a ship that arrived in Malaga from Costa Rica at the end of September, police and customs announced on Monday.

The haul, which is equivalent to 1,587 pounds, was hidden in a safe that was buried under piles of metal scraps, according to a video released by the authorities.

Eight people were arrested, the interior ministry said in a statement.

At the end of August, Spain seized nearly 9.5 tonnes of cocaine from Ecuador, a record, that was stashed in a container of bananas.

Spain's proximity to North Africa, a key source of hashish, and its close ties with former colonies in Latin America -- the world's main cocaine-producing region -- have made it a portal for drug smuggling into Europe.