Norway Parliament Votes in favor of Seabed Mining
Norway's parliament on Tuesday voted in favor of allowing Arctic seabed mineral exploration, in line with a deal reached between the government and key opposition parties last month, overcoming objections from environmental campaigners.The decision comes as Norway hopes to become the first country to make deep-sea mining happen on a commercial scale and secure critical minerals and jobs despite concerns over the environmental impact and international calls for a moratorium.There is yet no set timeline for when exploration could begin, although the plan is to award companies exclusive rights to
Norwegian Parliament Strikes Deal to Advance Seabed Mining
.The deal was agreed between the two parties in the minority government - Labour and the Centre Party - and the opposition Conservatives and the Progress Party, securing a comfortable majority.Baard Ludvig Thorheim, a member of parliament for the Conservatives, told Reuters the environmental bar for seabed mining had been set fairly high in the amended proposal."We believe, and hope, it will become the international standard for this activity," he said. "At the same time it is important that it is a framework that is predictable for commercial players, on which we rely on for these activities
EXPLAINER-Why Does Norway Want to Mine the Seabed?
EU's views on the issue are vital for Oslo's plans, some analysts have said.Norway is encouraged by EU ambitions to diversify imports of critical minerals and to boost local production. However, the European Parliament has also called on member-states to support a global moratorium on seabed mining. The European Commission has been also advocating for a deep-sea mining moratorium until more is known about the risks.HOW DO YOU MINE MINERALS FROM THE SEABED?There is no commercially available technology to produce seabed minerals, though some machines have been built to test production elsewhere
Norway Should Call Off Deep Sea Mining Plans, Key Ally Says
that it should be sent back to the government," Lars Haltbrekken, SV's spokesman on energy and environment, told Reuters."We would like to have a moratorium for at least ten years so that we can find out more (about the environmental consequences) before we start digging for minerals on the seabed," he added. Haltbrekken said SV was still discussing a list of its demands for the upcoming fiscal budget, to be presented on Oct. 6.He did not say whether SV would make support for the government's budget conditional on the issue. The government could still win the approval with
Deep-Sea Mining Threatens Biodiversity 25 Times More Than Land-Based Mining, Report Says
say deep sea ecosystem restoration, such as installing artificial clay nodules to replace those lost, could mitigate these impacts.But this would cost between $5.3 - $5.7 million per square kilometer, compared with $2.7 million price per square kilometer to mine them, according to the report.Seabed mining in international waters cannot start until the International Seabed Authority (ISA), a Jamaica-based U.N. body, decides on regulations expected by July.Several countries, including Germany, and companies, such as Google, AB Volvo Group, and Samsung SDI are calling for a moratorium on the start
Transocean's Drillship to be Used for Deep-Sea Mineral Exploration
potential of deep seabed minerals, which may represent a better way of meeting future metal demand and expand diversity of supply. "Critical metals, such as nickel, cobalt, copper, and manganese – found in polymetallic nodules – are key ingredients for a low-carbon future. Deep-seabed mining certainly won’t replace land-based mining entirely, however, according to peer-reviewed scientific literature, these metals could be delivered with a 40% reduction of the carbon footprint, which is essential when combating climate change.” Luc Vandenbulcke, Chief Executive Officer
Norway Finds 'Substantial' Mineral Resources on Its Seabed
A Norwegian study has found a "substantial" amount of metals and minerals ranging from copper to rare earth metals on the seabed of its extended continental shelf, authorities said on Friday in their first official estimates. The Nordic country, a major oil and gas exporter, is considering whether to open its offshore areas to deep-sea mining, a process that requires parliament's approval and has sparked environmental concerns. "Of the metals found on the seabed in the study area, magnesium, niobium, cobalt, and rare earth minerals are found on the European Commission's
TMC's NORI, Allseas Lift 3,000t of Seabed Nodules from Pacific Ocean
the seafloor in the NORI-D exploration of the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean. ©TMC"The data collected, together with many terabytes of existing baseline data collected by NORI throughout 16 offshore campaigns, will form the basis of NORI’s application to the International Seabed Authority for an exploitation contract, which the Company expects to be ready for submission in the second half of 2023," TMC said."TMC and NORI expect that the findings from the rich data gathered during the trials will be published in scientific literature in the next year, in what is
Australian Mining Magnate Calls for Ban on Seabed Mining
Fortescue Metals executive chairman Andrew Forrest on Tuesday said his charitable foundation is in favor of a pause on seabed mining, the first time a prominent mining executive has spoken out against the nascent industry.Forrest said the Minderoo Foundation, which he and his wife Nicola fund with the dividends they get from Fortescue, will back a pause until there's sufficient evidence that damage to ocean environments can be prevented.Seabed mining would involve vacuuming up potato-sized rocks rich in battery metals that blanket vast swathes of the sea floor at depths of 4-6 kilometres, and are
February 2024
