Climate Politics

Explorer Seeks Trump’s Nod to Mine Metals on Pacific Seabed

A protest against deep-sea mining in Rotterdam in 2022.
Photographer: Charles M. Vella/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

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By Todd Woody

March 28, 2025 at 1:48 AM EDT

A seabed mining company has asked the Trump administration for approval to harvest the ocean floor for critical metals in international waters controlled by a United Nations-affiliated organization

The Metals Company, or TMC, has “officially requested a pre-application consultation” with the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and executives have also met with White House officials, the firm said Thursday in a statement.