Amid repeated calls for a global moratorium on deep-sea mining until more is known about its environmental impact, China – which itself has interests in the unexplored frontier – has sought closer cooperation with Pacific island nation Nauru to discuss how to counter the United States’ plan to sidestep international law and accelerate mineral extraction.
To continue reading, subscribe to Eco‑Business.
There's something for everyone. We offer a range of subscription plans.
- Access our stories and receive our Insights Weekly newsletter with the free EB Member plan.
- Unlock unlimited access to our content and archive with EB Circle.
- Publish your content with EB Premium.
Last week, Chinese Ambassador to Nauru, Lü Jin, and Nauruan president, David Adeang, met to discuss how to fast track seabed mining while they also condemned the Donald Trump administration for issuing an executive order, which will see the US circumvent negotiations over new rules to govern seabed extraction.
A mining code for the ocean floor has still not been finalised after months of negotiations through the United Nations-backed regulator International Seabed Authority (ISA).
Dozens of countries have called for a moratorium on seabed mining, and some including China, which is keen to see seabed mining take place, have urged restraint until the ISA agrees on rules for extracting minerals from the deep sea.
The rules will govern a stretch of the Pacific ocean floor known as the Clarion Clipperton Zone, where an estimated US$20 trillion in metal deposits used to make electric vehicle batteries lie.
China and Nauru stated that the US was in serious breach of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, a treaty forged in the 1980s to protect the high seas from exploitation. In a joint statement, they said they would work together to “jointly resist hegemonic acts and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests and international justice”.
Nauru is the latest Pacific island country that China has forged ties with as it eyes strengthening its dominion over the supply of minerals needed for the energy transition. In recent weeks, China has had discussions with Kiribati and the Cook Islands, Pacific states that claim the industry is key to economic growth in a land-scarce region.
Nauru, Kiribati and the Cook Islands are three of 14 countries with licenses to mine the CCZ. The Trump administration’s latest order is widely seen as a move to counter China’s dominance in the transition minerals space.
Other key Asia-Pacific concession-holders are China’s regional rivals Japan, South Korea and India. Japan has been more focused on mining domestic waters following the discovery of more than 200 million tonnes of manganese nodules in the country’s exclusive economic zone last July. Large-scale extraction of nodules is expected by next year, led by non-profit The Nippon Foundation.
South Korea announced earlier this year that it is reviving a stalled effort to draft domestic legislation for deep-sea mining, while India, which has two deep-sea exploration licences in the Indian Ocean, is counting on the industry to meet goals to ramp up renewables capacity by 2030.
Opposition to mining persists
China and Nauru’s meeting took place the day after Luxembourg became the 33rd country to back a moratorium on deep-sea extraction in the CCZ until regulations are in place to govern the industry.
Other jurisdictions that oppose seabed mining are Nauru’s Pacific neighbours Palau, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, Micronesia, Samoa, and New Zealand, although the latter’s centre-right government said earlier this year that it might rethink its anti-mining stance.
Earlier this month, New Caledonia adopted a 50-year moratorium on deep-sea mining in its waters. One of the most restrictive measures taken globally to date, it protects an area of 1.3 million square kilometers from extraction.
Some corporates, including consumer brands Google, Samsung and BMW, banks such as Credit Suisse and major seafood players also support a pause on extraction until more is known about an industry that scientists and environmental groups say will have irreversible impacts on ocean and climate health.
America’s unilateral push for ocean extraction without an ISA-approved mining code was swifty followed by an application from Nasdaq-listed resources firm The Metals Company (TMC) for a commercial license to mine the ocean floor.
TMC is the industry’s loudest agitator for commercial deep-sea mining at scale. It has previously argued that ocean extraction is needed to fulfill the green transition and is a more sustainable alternative to land-based mining. It now positions the industry as crucial for securing American critical mineral supply chains.
It is unclear where TMC’s discussions with US regulators leave its relationship with Nauru, which is the firm’s sponsoring state to mine a concession within the CCZ. TMC’s chief executive Gerrard Barron said in a recent earnings call that the company would be looking to renew the license for its subsidiary Nauru Ocean Resources Inc, or NORI. “We are covering all bases,” he said.
A partnership between TMC and Kiribati ended in March. Kiribati subsequently struck a mining deal with China. TMC still has a deal in place to mine the CCZ on Tonga’s behalf.
Phil McCabe, Pacific regional coordinator for the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, a non-profit campaigning for a pause on deep-sea mining, suggested that the comments made by Nauru’s president suggest that the country wants to distance itself from TMC, which could be in breach of UNCLOS if it mines in partnership with the US.
The cocktail of geopolitical conflict and growing concern over the environmental impact of the industry that has unfolded in recent weeks mean that it would be “wise for states to slow things down” and agree on a moratorium on deep-sea mining, McCabe told Eco-Business.
Deep-sea mining is expected to be a key topic of discussion at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, France on 9 June.
