Deep-Sea Mining Edges Closer to Reality

Global and U.S. regulators take steps toward seabed mining as debates over ecology and demand sharpen.

16 Jul 2025

The race to mine the ocean floor is no longer just a distant possibility. International and national regulators are quietly laying the legal groundwork that could one day unlock vast deposits of metals critical to the clean energy transition.

In July, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in Kingston advanced negotiations on a long-awaited Mining Code to govern extraction in international waters. No commercial project has yet been approved, but the latest talks set timelines and work plans that stretch through 2026. For the first time, there is a clearer sense of how rules might take shape.

The United States is also moving. Earlier this summer, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration proposed updated rules for companies seeking to explore or recover minerals under existing legislation. While still in draft form, the effort signals that Washington wants to be ready if seabed mining shifts from theory to practice.

Supporters frame the industry as a strategic answer to surging demand for nickel, cobalt, and copper, which are essential for electric vehicles, grid batteries, and renewable power systems. Small island nations such as Nauru argue that mining partnerships could expand economic opportunity and give them a foothold in the global energy economy.

Yet concerns run deep. Environmental groups warn that fragile ecosystems remain poorly understood, and that rushing into industrial-scale mining could cause irreversible harm. Scientists point out that the deep sea is one of Earth's least explored frontiers.

Industry leaders counter that advances in monitoring technology and stronger transparency standards could balance extraction with environmental protection. They argue the sector has a chance to evolve hand in hand with regulation rather than lag behind it.

With demand for battery metals rising and supply chains tightening, the conversation is shifting from whether deep-sea mining will happen to how and when. The frameworks now under discussion may prove decisive, setting the stage for whether the seabed becomes the next frontier of resource supply or remains a contested, untapped expanse.