The Canadian deep-sea mining company The Metals Company (TMC) has announced that it has “initiated a process” with U.S. regulators to apply for both exploration and exploitation licenses, potentially bypassing the international regulator.
This process, in collaboration with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), is guided by the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act of 1980 (DSHMRA).
This Act was originally created as an interim legal framework for seabed mineral resource recovery before an international regulatory framework was established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
A NOAA spokesperson, who chose to remain unnamed, confirmed that TMC had requested to begin a pre-application consultation process.
TMC made the announcement through a press release and an investor call just before the conclusion of the latest meeting of the 36-member council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA). The ISA, a UN-affiliated body, is responsible for regulating deep-sea mining in international waters.
For the past two weeks, ISA delegates have been working on finalizing the mining code — a set of regulations and procedures that would permit deep-sea mining on the high seas. The ISA had aimed to complete the mining code by the end of this year, based on a loosely set deadline established in 2023.
However, observers note that the mining code is still far from complete, with significant issues still unresolved, such as how royalty payments will be distributed and how environmental protections will be enforced.
Even TMC’s CEO, Gerard Barron, who had previously expressed confidence that the ISA would finalize the mining code on time, acknowledged the possibility of further delays.
Despite these setbacks, TMC insists that the ISA’s inability to finalize the mining code doesn’t impede the company’s plans for deep-sea mining. The company also pointed to support from “numerous officials” within the White House and U.S. Congress.
Among the most vocal U.S. proponents of deep-sea mining are Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and House Representatives Elise Stefanik and Rob Wittman. Lutnick, a former CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald (one of TMC’s major bankers), now leads the commerce department, which oversees NOAA. Barron has previously stated that Trump’s “America First” policy would be advantageous for TMC.
The New York Times reported that drafts of an executive order authorizing TMC’s plan were circulating, awaiting Trump’s signature.
TMC also revealed that it had applied for a $9 million grant under the U.S. Defense Production Act Title III program for “feasibility work on a domestic refinery for nodule-derived intermediate products.” However, TMC did not mention this grant application in its most recent investor call.
“We have amassed an unprecedented wealth of environmental impact data, have gone above and beyond to design a system that minimizes environmental impacts, and feel confident that we now know enough to get started and prove we can manage environmental risks,” Barron stated during the investor call.
“What we need is a fair hearing and a regulator willing to engage. Thankfully, we have another path forward.”
TMC, based in Vancouver and publicly listed on Nasdaq since 2021, has been advocating for the establishment of a deep-sea mining industry in international waters. If successful, the company could become the first to obtain a commercial exploitation license for mining in international waters.
TMC is targeting polymetallic nodules—potato-shaped rocks rich in valuable metals such as copper, nickel, manganese, and cobalt—found in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) of the Pacific Ocean.
Initially, TMC promoted these nodules as essential for the green transition, as some electric vehicle batteries use these same metals. However, TMC has since shifted its focus to U.S. national security, arguing that deep-sea mining could help secure a critical mineral supply independent of China.
Critics, however, argue that deep-sea mining could cause irreversible harm to the environment and is financially unviable and unnecessary, as land-based sources and recycling could meet the global demand for critical minerals.
Barron stated that the U.S. already has an existing legal framework for deep-sea mining and that there is “political will to put existing authorities to use.”
TMC, The Canadian Deep-Sea Mining Company
He confirmed that TMC will submit applications through its rebranded U.S. subsidiary, The Metals Company USA (formerly DeepGreen Resources), in the second quarter of this year as part of its efforts to move toward commercial production.
According to the NOAA spokesperson, only U.S. companies, including their subsidiaries based in the U.S., are eligible for a license.
The legal basis for the U.S. issuing licenses for mining in international waters remains ambiguous. The U.S. is one of roughly a dozen countries that have signed but not ratified UNCLOS, which means the U.S. lacks decision-making power at the ISA and cannot sponsor companies or apply for licenses for areas in international waters through the ISA.
However, Barron has argued that this also means the ISA has no authority over what the U.S. chooses to do.
To date, NOAA has issued four exploration licenses under DSHMRA, though only two remain active. Both of these licenses are in the CCZ and are held by aerospace and defense giant Lockheed Martin.
Lockheed Martin renewed these licenses for an additional five years in 2022. Email exchanges between NOAA and Lockheed Martin from July 15, 2024, and February 25, 2025, obtained by Mongabay, show no indication that Lockheed intends to surrender its current licenses.
Lockheed Martin has previously stated it would not pursue mining activities until the ISA finalizes its mining code. Mongabay reached out to Lockheed Martin for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
TMC had also previously stated that its subsidiary, Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. (NORI), sponsored by the Pacific island nation of Nauru, would submit an exploitation application to the ISA on June 27, 2025.
This timing coincides with a meeting of the ISA’s Legal and Technical Commission, which is responsible for recommending approval of mining contracts.
TMC also holds another ISA exploration license through its subsidiary Tonga Offshore Mining Limited (TOML), sponsored by Tonga. It remains unclear which area of the CCZ TMC will pursue for its U.S. license.
During the investor call, TMC’s chief financial officer, Craig Shesky, suggested that the company still intends to file an application for the NORI license area in June 2025 but has “not yet determined with which regulator.”
“So even after a U.S. application is launched, we still retain the NORI and TOML exploration contracts, and we fully intend on remaining compliant with the requirements of those ISA contracts,” Shesky said. He further stated that TMC’s relationships with Nauru and Tonga are in “excellent” standing.
U.S.-based environmental attorney and ocean policy consultant Bobbi-Jo Dobush noted that Shesky’s comments seemed to imply that TMC could apply for mining licenses via NOAA for the same areas it currently holds under ISA contracts, which she described as a “wild” move if it were to happen.
“The U.S. doesn’t have any agreement with the ISA, so TMC could technically claim an area already allocated to a Chinese contractor via the U.S. system if it wanted to,” Dobush, currently attending the ISA council meeting in Kingston, Jamaica, told Mongabay. “But what it actually wants to do is claim what it already has.”
Duncan Currie, an international and environmental lawyer who advises the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC), expressed concerns that such an action would violate UNCLOS, which stipulates that no state can exercise sovereignty over the “area” — regions of the ocean beyond national jurisdiction — or its resources.
“It would be an extremely concerning development, I think, both from the point of view of the integrity of UNCLOS as well as the Pacific,” Currie, also at the ISA meeting, told Mongabay. “One of my overall real concerns of this, no matter where it goes, is the whole threat is extremely insulting and concerning to the Pacific, because … they’ve been leant on, pushed, cajoled, for the last few years.”
On the final day of the ISA meeting, newly elected Secretary General Leticia Carvalho echoed Currie’s sentiment, stating that any unilateral action would undermine the principles of multilateralism and international law.
While TMC has suggested that obtaining licenses and permits through NOAA could be a simpler process than going through the ISA, the company acknowledged some challenges in its recent annual filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), submitted on March 27.
The company stated that there are “no assurances” that it will secure exploration licenses or commercial recovery permits under DSHMRA in a timely or economically viable manner.
It also noted that NOAA has not granted commercialization rights for seafloor nodule production, and that provisions under UNCLOS or other ISA regulations might prevent them from pursuing this alternative regulatory path at the same time.
NOAA later provided an official statement to Mongabay, reconfirming TMC’s request for a pre-application consultation and confirming the eligibility of U.S. companies.
NOAA’s statement also noted, “NOAA’s National Ocean Service reviews these applications for compliance and requirements in accordance with the act and regulations.
The process ensures a thorough environmental impact review, interagency consultations, and an opportunity for public comment. Licensing and permitting involves a multi-step process before any exploration activities or commercial recovery can occur.”
