Deep Sea Minerals Archives

Deep Sea Minerals

Mineral resource estimates for Nordic waters expose different lines of thinking between major Norwegian institutions

April 3, 2024

A debate has recently unfolded around how much copper – and related metals – are present in Norway’s mid-oceanic ridge system, an area where mining could take place in the…

Finding deep sea minerals with oil and gas technology

Ronny Setså

March 22, 2024

“With conventional exploration for oil and gas, electromagnetic measurements (EM) are used to map resistivity in prospects – hydrocarbons are more resistive than brines. When we are looking for minerals,…

Norway opens for seabed mineral activities

Ronny Setså

January 10, 2024

The final step in a years-long process was made in the Norwegian Parliament on January 9th, 2024. The four largest political parties, representing a strong majority, voted to open an…

What moves a grain?

Ronny Setså

January 3, 2024

Plume dispersion is not solely a matter of distance from the mine site, physical processeses are also important”, said Thomas Peacock, professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at the…

Norway is getting a new marine industry

Ronny Setså

December 5, 2023

The governing parties, the Labour Party and the Center Party, together with the Conservative Party and the Progressive Party, have secured a majority in parliament on the opening of mineral operations…

Environmentally responsible mining: Not so impossible

Ronny Setså

November 24, 2023

A key milestone was met in May this year. Impossible Metals demonstrated the capabilities of their autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) Eureka 1. The successful test in shallow water has brought…

Japan eyes production from REE-rich muds

Ronny Setså

November 13, 2023

The unusual deposit was first discovered by Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) in 2013 and is located in an area off the Minami-Torishima Island (Marcus Island) in…

Leader in marine minerals

Ronny Setså

October 5, 2023

Rotterdam. The Underwater Minerals Conference (UMC) is being held in the Netherlands for the 51st year this week, and spans six days. The number of participants has increased. And so…

An exciting discovery in the far north

Ronny Setså

September 8, 2023

“Plan B” became as successful as anyone could have hoped, as a new hydrothermal vent was discovered by a Norwegian team of researchers. This summer, the GoNorth expedition was originally…

ISA: No quick decisions despite deadline breach

Ronny Setså

August 14, 2023

The Metals Company (TMC) is eager to begin production. They might be the first company in the world to start deep sea mining in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ), located in…

A national team for increased knowledge in the deep sea

Ronny Setså

July 24, 2023

“This is collaboration across disciplines, and both industry and academia are involved in order to utilise the expertise we have in Norway”, said Anette Broch Mathisen Tvedt, CEO of Adepth…

Norway inches closer to opening up for deep-sea mining

Henk Kombrink

June 27, 2023

“We need minerals to succeed with the energy transition. Today, resources are controlled by a few countries, which makes us vulnerable. Seabed minerals can become a source of access to…

The global energy sector from a subsurface perspective