SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A sudden announcement has stirred the community of a lesser-known U.N. agency based in Jamaica, responsible for protecting international deep-sea waters for over three decades. The Metals Company, located in Vancouver, Canada, made a public statement on Thursday regarding its intention to seek authorization from the U.S. government to engage in deep-sea mining within international waters. This move may allow them to circumvent the International Seabed Authority, the body that holds the power to grant such exploitation permits but has not yet done so.
Duncan Currie, an international lawyer specializing in environmental law, and legal advisor to the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition based in the Netherlands, expressed concerns by stating, “It would be a major breach of international law…if the U.S. were to grant it.” The Metals Company is on a quest for obtaining minerals from the seafloor, including cobalt, copper, nickel, and manganese, which are crucial for electric car batteries and various green technologies.
Just a few hours prior to the 36-member council of the International Seabed Authority’s meeting on Friday — the concluding session of a two-week conference deliberating on the conditions and feasibility of deep-sea mining — the company’s announcement was made public. The authority was scheduled to address the company’s commercial mining application during the Friday session.
Louisa Casson, a campaigner from Greenpeace attending the Friday meeting, remarked on the gravity of the situation, saying, “The scale of the threat…has been taken incredibly seriously here.” She highlights the existing questions and a lack of clarity in the company’s plans, including whether the company would still pursue a permit from the authority while engaging in dialogue with the U.S. government.
Duncan Currie found the timing of The Metals Company’s announcement “insulting to the ISA,” calling it “an extremely irresponsible threat” and likening it to “holding a gun to the international community.” Formed in 1994 under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the International Seabed Authority has over 165 member nations, which notably excludes the United States.
According to The Metals Company, U.S. seabed mining code supposedly grants it the liberty to start operations in international waters since the U.S. is not bound by the authority’s regulations. The company is reportedly in dialogue with entities including the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
The company revealed that it has engaged with several officials from the White House and the U.S. Congress regarding their backing for this nascent sector. NOAA confirmed that The Metals Company USA LLC has requested a preliminary consultation to familiarize itself with the formal deep-sea mining license application process, which involves compliance reviews and meeting specific requirements. As per NOAA, “The process ensures a thorough environmental impact review, interagency consultations, and opportunity for public comment.”
The Metals Company criticized the International Seabed Authority for what it calls “slow progress” on finalizing a proposed mining code. While numerous exploration licenses have been distributed by the authority, no provisional licenses have been granted.
Most exploration efforts are occurring in the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone, spanning 1.7 million square miles (4.5 million square kilometers) between Hawaii and Mexico, at depths ranging from 13,000 to 19,000 feet (4,000 to 6,000 meters). With more than 30 countries, including Canada, advocating for a ban or suspension of deep-sea mining, industry giants like Volvo, BMW, Volkswagen, Google, and Samsung have vowed not to utilize seafloor-derived minerals.
“The international seabed is the common heritage of humankind, and no state should take unilateral action to exploit it,” said Greenpeace in a statement. Scientists have cautioned that deep-sea minerals have taken millions of years to form, and mining could trigger noise disturbances, light pollution, and harmful dust storms.
Emily Jeffers, a senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, further emphasized, “The deep ocean is one of the last truly wild places on Earth, home to life we’re only beginning to understand. Letting deep-sea mining go forward now would be like starting a fire in a library of books nobody’s even read yet.” Conversely, companies involved argue that deep-sea mining is more cost-effective and environmentally sustainable compared to its land-based alternative.