Deep sea mining

Deep sea mining is the extraction of minerals from the <a href="/facts/Seabed/VvxuEWJu">seabed</a> of the <a href="/facts/Deep_sea/c88zdYul">deep sea</a>. The main ores of commercial interest are <a href="/facts/Polymetallic_nodules/e9RCgkFo">polymetallic nodules</a>, which are found at depths of 4–6 km (2.5–3.7 mi) primarily on the <a href="/facts/Abyssal_plain/UWv7Tt5b">abyssal plain</a>. The <a href="/facts/Clarion%25E2%2580%2593Clipperton_zone/ILGhYoq4">Clarion–Clipperton zone</a> (CCZ) alone contains over 21 billion metric tons of these nodules, with minerals such as <a href="/facts/Copper/I8PEE8oX">copper</a>, <a href="/facts/Nickel/KwMCHYRP">nickel</a>, <a href="/facts/Cobalt/gqhScEw4">cobalt</a> and <a href="/facts/Manganese/j9ELd1TL">manganese</a> making up roughly 30% of their weight. It is estimated that the global ocean floor holds more than 120 million tons of cobalt, five times the amount found in terrestrial reserves.
As of July 2024, only exploratory licenses have been issued, with no commercial-scale deep sea mining operations yet. The <a href="/facts/International_Seabed_Authority/PygKYphz">International Seabed Authority</a> (ISA) regulates all mineral-related activities in <a href="/facts/International_waters/PUPq5zmR">international waters</a> and has granted 31 exploration licenses so far: 19 for polymetallic nodules, mostly in the CCZ; 7 for polymetallic sulphides in <a href="/facts/Mid-ocean_ridge/wYdgdSW3">mid-ocean ridges</a>; and 5 for cobalt-rich crusts in the <a href="/facts/Western_Pacific_Ocean/bdxgXRVM">Western Pacific Ocean</a>. There is a push for deep sea mining to commence by 2025, when regulations by the ISA are expected to be completed.
In April 2025, U.S. President Trump signed an Executive Order instructing the <a href="/facts/National_Oceanic_and_Atmospheric_Administration/IvcuqNJg">National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a> to expedite permits for companies to mine in both international and U.S. territorial waters, citing the Deep Seabed Hard Minerals Resource Act of 1980.
Deep sea mining is being considered in the <a href="/facts/Exclusive_economic_zone/UtMbSd3w">exclusive economic zone</a> (EEZ) of countries, such as <a href="/facts/Norway/wlDRKRTR">Norway</a>, where in January 2024 the government announced its intention to allow companies to apply for exploration permits in 2025. In December 2024, Norway’s plans to begin awarding exploration licenses were temporarily put on hold after the <a href="/facts/Socialist_Left_Party_(Norway)/sywQGK2I">Socialist Left Party</a> (SV) blocked the planned licensing round as part of negotiations over the government budget. In 2022, the <a href="/facts/Cook_Islands/kmvk0Yed">Cook Islands</a> Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) granted three exploration licenses for cobalt-rich polymetallic nodules within their EEZ. In 2025, it was announced that the <a href="/facts/Cook_Islands/kmvk0Yed">Cook Islands</a> had signed a deal with <a href="/facts/China/lTjIXY5p">China</a> focussed on deep-sea mining. <a href="/facts/Papua_New_Guinea/RLaVlhFC">Papua New Guinea</a> was the first country to approve a deep sea mining permit in state waters for the Solwara 1 project, despite three independent reviews highlighting significant gaps and flaws in the environmental impact statement.
The most common commercial model of deep sea mining proposed involves a caterpillar-track hydraulic collector and a riser lift system bringing the harvested ore to a production support vessel with <a href="/facts/Dynamic_positioning/ldIHFKj7">dynamic positioning</a>, and then depositing extra discharge down the water column below 2,000 meters. Related technologies include robotic mining machines, as surface ships, and offshore and onshore metal refineries. Though largely composed of nickel and manganese which are most widely used as key inputs into the steel industry, wind farms, solar energy, <a href="/facts/Electric_vehicle/jhCbx5ur">electric vehicles</a>, and battery technologies use many of the deep-sea metals. <a href="/facts/Electric_vehicle_battery/txjgvF76">Electric vehicle batteries</a> are a key driver of the critical metals demand that incentivizes deep sea mining, as well as demands for the production of aerospace and defense technologies, and infrastructure.
The <a href="/facts/Environmental_effects_of_mining/wKxxBpIM">environmental impact</a> of deep sea mining is controversial. Environmental advocacy groups such as <a href="/facts/Greenpeace/nB8x6RJL">Greenpeace</a> and the Deep Sea Mining Campaign claimed that seabed mining has the potential to damage <a href="/facts/Deep_sea_ecosystem/L22dWQhb">deep sea ecosystems</a> and spread pollution from heavy metal-laden plumes. Critics have called for moratoria or permanent bans. Opposition campaigns enlisted the support of some industry figures, including firms reliant on the target metals. Individual countries like Norway, Cook Islands, India, Brazil and others with significant deposits within their <a href="/facts/Exclusive_economic_zone/UtMbSd3w">exclusive economic zones (EEZ's)</a> are exploring the subject.
As of 2021, the majority of marine mining used dredging operations in far shallower depths of less than 200 m, where <a href="/facts/Construction_aggregate/K7XM0BAg">sand, silt and mud for construction purposes</a> is abundant, along with <a href="/facts/Heavy_mineral_sands_ore_deposits/LUn7EU34">mineral rich sands</a> containing <a href="/facts/Ilmenite/fh2eXgpo">ilmenite</a> and diamonds.

Deep sea mining open-in-new

Deep sea mining