First Deep-Sea Mining Company Asks Trump for International Permit
Deep-sea mining firm The Metals Co asked the Trump administration on Tuesday to approve its plans to mine the international seabed, making it the first such company to seek the government's permission to operate outside U.S. territorial waters.Last week President Donald Trump signed an order aiming to jumpstart mining in both domestic and international waters in an attempt to boost U.S. access to critical minerals and reduce China's market control.The move ratchets up tension between Washington and the United Nations-backed International Seabed Authority, which has been crafting mining standards
Trump Order Fast Tracks Subsea Mining
President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at boosting the deep-sea mining industry, marking his latest attempt to boost U.S. access to nickel, copper and other critical minerals used widely across the economy.The order, which Trump signed in private, seeks to jumpstart the mining of both U.S. and international waters as part of a push to offset China's sweeping control of the critical minerals industry.Parts of the Pacific Ocean and elsewhere are estimated to contain large amounts of potato-shaped rocks known as polymetallic nodules filled with the building blocks for electric vehicles
China Concerned About US Deep-Sea Metals Stockpile Plan
;create large quantities ready and available on U.S. territory to be used in the future," in case of a conflict with China that might constrain imports of metals and rare earths, the report said.China has placed some rare earth elements under export restrictions in retaliation to U.S. President Donald Trump's steep tariffs on Chinese goods, potentially cutting the U.S. off from critical minerals vital to everything from smartphones to electric car batteries.Following the report, the Chinese foreign ministry said that under international law, the seabed and its resources "are the common heritage
White House Aims to Eliminate NOAA Climate Research
The administration of President Donald Trump aims to eliminate the arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that oversees research on climate change and refocus the U.S. fisheries service to support energy development, according to a draft White House budget document seen by Reuters.The moves are part of a plan to downsize NOAA dramatically, slashing agency funding by around $1.67 billion, or 27%, according to the proposal.The Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, known also as NOAA Research, would be closed under the proposal, along with $480 million in funding for
NOAA Fires Previously Reinstated Probationary Workers
the way for the Trump administration to fire thousands of employees, according to five sources familiar with the situation.The agency, which sits within the Department of Commerce, fired more than 800 employees on February 27, one of many federal agencies to fire probationary workers as President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk seek to shrink the federal workforce.The employees were then reinstated on March 17 to administrative leave, during which they were paid but not permitted to work, in line with a federal court order that blocked the probationary worker firings."The Department
Trump Moves to More Easily Fire NOAA, DOE Employees
with fewer protections, according to two sources familiar with the situation and an email seen by Reuters.The moves, which the sources said are taking place at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Department of Energy, are the first evidence the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump is following through on a plan announced in his first day in office to recategorize tens of thousands of government workers to facilitate layoffs and remove career civil servants that may oppose its policies.It was not immediately clear if reclassifications were under way at other agencies or
White House Could Bypass UN on Deep-Sea Mining
House is weighing an executive order that would fast-track permitting for deep-sea mining in international waters and let mining companies bypass a United Nations-backed review process, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the deliberations.If signed, the order would mark U.S. President Donald Trump's latest attempt to tap international deposits of nickel, copper and other critical minerals used widely across the economy after recent efforts in Greenland and Ukraine. Trump earlier this month also invoked emergency powers to boost domestic minerals production.The International Seabed Authority
Fugro Restarts US Hydrocarbon, LNG Projects After Trump Win
Dutch geological data specialist Fugro has restarted multiple projects in the U.S. hydrocarbon and LNG sectors since Donald Trump's election and is optimistic about offshore wind development in Asia and Europe, its CEO told Reuters on Friday.Mark Heine said the U.S. government had issued licenses put on hold by the former administration of Joe Biden, without giving any further details on the U.S. projects.U.S. renewables projects that had not yet secured permits or power purchase agreements were now in doubt, he said, predicting that operators would move to Europe. Offshore wind represents 7% of
First Solar Bars Use of Deep-Sea Minerals
First Solar agreed to refrain from using minerals mined from the deep sea, an early win for shareholder environmental activists and a sign their agenda might make progress despite opposition from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.The Tempe, Arizona-based photovoltaic manufacturer will keep the minerals out of its supply chain "until scientific findings are sufficient to assess the environmental risks of this potentially devastating new mining process," according to a summary of the agreement provided to Reuters by advocacy group As You Sow. In return, the group withdrew a
February 2025
