Hungry for more critical minerals to power the energy transition, a slew of countries and companies are desperate to start mining the seafloor for a potential cache of metals—including cobalt, nickel, copper, and manganese—that will be critical to the scramble to build ever more batteries.
Lying thousands of feet underwater are an estimated billions of dry tons of polymetallic nodules, which are potato-shaped formations packed with critical minerals. The appeal in those little chunks of rock is just how rich they seem to be, with ore concentrations potentially much, much higher than many mainstream veins on land. But tapping those resources in the high seas, the waters that lie beyond nations’ exclusive economic zones, has long been off limits—until now, potentially.
International negotiations are now underway to craft a mining rulebook for the high seas, and China doesn’t want to be left out of the race. Eager to maintain its command of the world’s critical mineral supply chains, experts say that Beijing is positioning itself for success in the prospective industry by ramping up investment and shaping negotiations, even though it doesn’t appear to be in a rush to begin mining.
