Companies Rush Into Deep-Sea Mining After Trump Executive Order
WASHINGTON (AP) — One year after President Donald Trump signed an executive order to jump-start a domestic deep-sea mining industry, at least nine companies are in active talks with the U.S. government for access to seabed minerals, according to an Associated Press review. Federal regulators at NOAA and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management are fast-tracking permits, with the first lease sales potentially as early as August 2026.
The move has sparked intense debate between industry advocates who see critical minerals as vital to U.S. economic and national security, and environmental groups and scientists who warn of potentially irreversible damage to poorly understood deep-ocean ecosystems. The U.S. push also puts the country at odds with international norms, as most nations have agreed to wait for global rules under the International Seabed Authority.
The Executive Order and Regulatory Fast-Track
Trump’s executive order, signed in April 2025 and titled “Unleashing America’s Offshore Critical Minerals and Resources,” directed U.S. agencies to expedite deep-sea mining permitting in both U.S. territorial waters and international waters. The administration estimates the industry could boost GDP by $300 billion over 10 years and create 100,000 jobs.
In January 2026, NOAA issued a final rule allowing companies to apply for exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits simultaneously, rather than sequentially. The agency is targeting processing 16 applications in fiscal year 2027. Meanwhile, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ordered accelerated development at BOEM, which is evaluating seabed mining in Alaska, Virginia, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands, with the first lease sale possible as early as August 2026.
The Companies Lining Up
The companies seeking permits range from established players to unlikely newcomers. The Metals Company (TMC), a Canadian-based front-runner, has tested equipment in deep-water conditions, hauling up 3,000 metric tons of nodules in a 2022 trial. CEO Gerard Barron was at the White House on the day of the executive order, and the company has spent nearly $800,000 on lobbying since 2024, as AP News reported.
Other firms include Odyssey Marine Exploration, originally a treasure-hunting firm that pivoted to seabed minerals after legal battles with Spain over a shipwreck; Impossible Metals, a startup targeting nodules near American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands despite local opposition; and Deep Sea Rare Minerals, a South Carolina startup that began by searching for Amelia Earhart’s plane.
“There’s going to be some flops. There’s going be some failures. Some businesses aren’t going to make it, but somebody will,” Tony Romeo, founder of Deep Sea Rare Minerals, told the AP.
Environmental and Scientific Concerns
Scientists warn that mining could damage fragile deep-sea ecosystems that remain poorly understood. A 2025 study by the Natural History Museum found that while sediment-dwelling creatures partially recovered from a 1970s mining test, larger animals did not return — and the nodules that serve as their habitat take millions of years to form.
“Deep-sea mining is a deeply dangerous endeavour for our ocean,” said Jeff Watters of Ocean Conservancy, as reported by the BBC. “The harm caused by deep-sea mining isn’t restricted to the ocean floor: it will impact the entire water column, top to bottom, and everyone and everything relying on it.”
American Samoa has banned deep-sea mining in local waters, and similar efforts are underway in the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam. Republican House representatives from all three territories oppose the federal push, concerned their constituents will bear the environmental and economic harms.
International Opposition
China condemned the executive order as violating international law. “The US authorisation… violates international law and harms the overall interests of the international community,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said, per the BBC. The EU, UK, and over 30 countries support a moratorium until global rules are established under the International Seabed Authority.
The U.S. has signed but never ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), though previous administrations generally respected the ISA’s authority. Trump’s order reverses this position, suggesting the U.S. will decide for itself when to mine the global seabed.
Economic Viability Questioned
Despite the administration’s optimism, analysts and mining consultants question whether deep-sea mining will ever be profitable. TMC’s own pre-feasibility study forecast breaking even in its eighth year of commercial mining — the same year it projected the mineral reserves would be “all mined.”
“No one goes into a project saying, ‘In the best-case scenario, we’ll break even,’” mining consultant Steven Emerman told the AP. “Anyone at my level would know to come to the conclusion that now is the time to abandon the project.”
Ian Lange, a professor of mineral economics at the Colorado School of Mines, expressed skepticism that permitting is the main obstacle, noting that copper mines in Michigan and Wyoming are fully permitted but inactive, and a cobalt mine sits idled in Idaho.
Processing Challenges Ahead
The U.S. currently has no major processing facilities for nickel, manganese, or cobalt — the key minerals found in polymetallic nodules. TMC has explored processing in Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia, but reliance on foreign partners could create legal complications under ISA rules. Countries bound by the ISA could face lawsuits for helping the U.S. tap the global seabed.
What’s Next
First lease sales could occur as early as August 2026, with NOAA targeting 16 permit applications in the next fiscal year. Legal challenges from environmental groups and affected territories are likely, and the industry’s future remains uncertain. A future administration could reverse or slow the permitting process, leaving companies racing to secure their claims while the political winds are favorable.
As Victor Vescovo, a private equity investor and deep-sea explorer who has chosen not to back any mining companies, told the AP: “It just feels right to people thinking that there is a cornucopia of metals on the bottom of the seafloor that are just there to be plucked up like seashells on the seashore. If there’s more scrutiny on their actual financial models, you would go, ‘Wait a second, this is much more uncertain.’”