The Metals Company to Apply for Permits under Existing U.S. Mining Code for Deep-Sea Minerals in the High Seas in Second Quarter of 2025

Rhea-AI Summary

TMC the metals company (Nasdaq: TMC) has announced plans to apply for deep-sea mining exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits under the U.S. Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA) of 1980. The company's subsidiary, TMC USA, will submit applications to NOAA in Q2 2025.

This strategic move comes after TMC invested over $500 million in understanding and developing nodule resources in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ). The company cites the International Seabed Authority's (ISA) failure to adopt Exploitation Regulations as a key reason for pursuing the U.S. regulatory path.

NOAA's regulatory framework, established in the 1980s, includes comprehensive environmental protection measures, with a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the CCZ and requirements for site-specific environmental assessments. TMC USA has initiated pre-application consultations with NOAA, viewing the U.S. framework as offering a more predictable and enforceable path forward for deep-sea mineral resource development.

Positive

• Strategic shift to U.S. regulatory framework could accelerate permit acquisition
• Substantial investment of $500+ million demonstrates strong financial commitment
• Pre-existing U.S. regulatory framework reduces regulatory uncertainty
• Established environmental assessment protocols through NOAA provide clear compliance path

Negative

• Regulatory uncertainty due to switching from ISA to U.S. framework
• Potential international legal challenges to U.S. jurisdiction in international waters
• No guarantee of permit approval from NOAA

Insights

Deep Sea Mining Regulatory Expert

TMC's strategic pivot to pursue U.S. regulatory approval represents a significant tactical shift with potentially transformative implications for the company's timeline to production. This move to apply for permits under DSHMRA circumvents the regulatory gridlock at the International Seabed Authority, where exploitation regulations remain stalled despite treaty obligations.

The regulatory calculation here is shrewd. The U.S. seabed mining framework offers distinct advantages: established since 1980, the DSHMRA provides a complete regulatory regime with implementing regulations finalized in 1989. Unlike the ISA's perpetual delays, NOAA offers a defined process with pre-application consultations and programmatic environmental assessments specifically for the Clarion Clipperton Zone where TMC's resources are located.

However, this approach carries jurisdictional complexities. While the U.S. asserts deep-sea mining as a Freedom of the High Seas, this interpretation faces opposition from UNCLOS signatories. TMC is effectively betting that U.S. regulatory backing will provide sufficient legitimacy despite potential international objections. The timing of the application (Q2 2025) suggests TMC has received encouraging signals from U.S. officials regarding permit viability.

This regulatory maneuver reflects growing frustration after investing $500+ million into resource development with no clear ISA timeline. For stakeholders, this represents an aggressive but calculated attempt to accelerate the path to commercial recovery of critical battery metals from the seabed.

Metals & Mining Industry Analyst

TMC's shift to pursue U.S. regulatory approval rather than waiting for the International Seabed Authority represents a potentially game-changing strategic pivot that could significantly accelerate their development timeline. After investing over $500 million in understanding and preparing to develop their nodule resource, this regulatory repositioning addresses the critical bottleneck in their path to commercialization.

The company's deep-sea nodule deposits contain four critical battery metals (nickel, copper, cobalt, and manganese) essential for the energy transition. The ongoing regulatory paralysis at the ISA has effectively stranded these strategic resources despite growing demand for battery metals. By leveraging the existing U.S. regulatory framework, TMC potentially creates a first-mover advantage in accessing these resources.

While this approach introduces new regulatory complexities, it demonstrates management's determination to advance toward production rather than remaining in indefinite regulatory limbo. The pre-application consultation process with NOAA provides a concrete pathway with defined timelines, unlike the perpetually delayed ISA process.

The move aligns with growing U.S. policy concerns about critical mineral supply chains, particularly for battery metals. TMC appears to be positioning itself at the intersection of resource security and energy transition needs, potentially garnering support from U.S. officials seeking to reduce dependency on foreign mineral sources. For investors, this represents a bold attempt to unlock value from their substantial investment in nodule resources by creating a clearer path to potential production.

• Following successful mining tests by U.S. consortia and pioneering environmental impact assessment by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the 1970s, the United States Congress passed the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA) in 1980 to enable exploration and commercial recovery of deep-sea minerals in the high seas
• DSHMRA, along with its implementing regulations completed by NOAA in 1989 and other landmark legislation on environmental protection invoked in DSHMRA, provide a robust, predictable regulatory regime while the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has not yet adopted the Exploitation Regulations in breach of its treaty obligations under UNCLOS and the 1994 Agreement
• The Company has met with officials in the White House and U.S. Congress and is encouraged by interest in the role deep-sea minerals can play in securing America’s supply chain
• The Company remains committed to following the paths that best serve all its stakeholders

NEW YORK, March 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TMC the metals company Inc. (Nasdaq: TMC) (“TMC” or the “Company”), an explorer of the world’s largest undeveloped resource of critical metals for building infrastructure, power generation, transmission, and batteries, today announced that its subsidiary The Metals Company USA LLC (“TMC USA”) has formally initiated a process with NOAA under the U.S. Department of Commerce to apply for exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits under existing U.S. legislation, the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act of 1980 (DSHMRA).

Following extensive legal diligence on DSHMRA, NOAA’s implementing regulations and other applicable environmental protection legislation, the Company strongly believes that the U.S. seabed mining code offers the greatest probability of securing a permit for commercial recovery of deep-sea mineral resources in a timely manner.

Gerard Barron, Chairman & CEO of The Metals Company, commented: “Over the last decade, we’ve invested over half a billion dollars to understand and responsibly develop the nodule resource in our contract areas. We built the world’s largest environmental dataset on the CCZ, carefully designed and tested an offshore collection system that minimizes the environmental impacts and followed every step required by the International Seabed Authority. But, despite collaborating in good faith with the ISA for over a decade, it has not yet adopted the Regulations on the Exploitation of Mineral Resources in the Area in breach of its express treaty obligations under UNCLOS and the 1994 Agreement.”

“We believe we have sufficient knowledge to get started and prove we can manage environmental risks. What we need is a regulator with a robust regulatory regime, and who is willing to give our application a fair hearing. That’s why we’ve formally initiated the process of applying for licenses and permits under the existing U.S. seabed mining code. After extensive legal review and constructive engagement with NOAA and other officials across the U.S. government, we believe the United States offers a stable, transparent, and enforceable regulatory path. TMC USA expects to submit applications to NOAA in the second quarter of 2025. We’re encouraged by the growing recognition in Washington that nodules represent a strategic opportunity for America—and we’re moving forward with urgency.”

U.S. Leadership in Seabed Mining Regulation

• U.S. Congress passed DSHMRA in 1980, affirming that deep-sea mining is a Freedom of the High Seas and granting NOAA authority to regulate exploration and commercial recovery activities of U.S. citizens in international waters
• NOAA adopted the implementing regulations on exploration licenses in 1981, followed by implementing regulations on commercial recovery permits in 1989, based on over six years of stakeholder consultations
• As a regulator, NOAA has adopted a common-sense, science-based approach, explicitly recognizing regulatory flexibility and trade-offs are required for a new industry, while guarding against significant adverse impacts on the environment
• NOAA engages with applicants pre-application and offers written guidance when appropriate to assist in the development of adequate applications
• NOAA has developed a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the CCZ and develops independent site-specific EISs based on data supplied by the applicants and any other data it deems relevant, ensuring a robust basis for environmental permitting decisions
  

TMC USA has officially requested a pre-application consultation with NOAA and is confident that the U.S. regulatory framework offers a path forward that is both predictable and enforceable. The Company remains committed to following the paths that best serve all its stakeholders.

About The Metals Company

The Metals Company is an explorer of lower-impact critical metals from seafloor polymetallic nodules, on a dual mission: (1) supply metals for building infrastructure, power generation, transmission, and batteries with net positive impacts compared to conventional production routes and (2) trace, recover and recycle the metals we supply to help create a metal commons that can be used in perpetuity. The Company through its subsidiaries holds exploration and commercial rights to two polymetallic nodule contract areas in the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific Ocean regulated by the International Seabed Authority and sponsored by the governments of the Republic of Nauru and the Kingdom of Tonga. More information is available at www.metals.co.

More information is available at www.metals.co.

Contacts

Media | media@metals.co

Investors | investors@metals.co

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking” statements and information within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by words such as “aims,” “believes,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “forecasts,” “may,” “plans,” “possible,” “potential,” “will” and variations of these words or similar expressions, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. Forward-looking statements in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company’s plans to apply for licenses and permits under the U.S. Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA); the timing and outcome of any applications to NOAA; the strength, predictability, and enforceability of the U.S. regulatory regime; the potential for the United States to provide a viable permitting path for commercial recovery of deep-sea minerals; and the Company’s strategic, financial, and operational plans moving forward. The Company may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in these forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, among other things: the Company’s strategies and future financial performance; the outcome of discussions and consultations with NOAA or other U.S. government officials; the Company’s ability to obtain required licenses and permits under DSHMRA or any other applicable U.S. laws or regulations; regulatory uncertainties and the impact of government regulation or political developments on the Company’s activities; the potential for legal or jurisdictional challenges to the Company’s rights or proposed operations in international waters; environmental risks and liabilities; the Company’s ability to develop sufficient data to support permit applications and satisfy environmental requirements; the Company’s ability to develop commercial operations, including onshore processing capabilities; risks associated with the Company’s limited operating history and need for additional financing; and other risks and uncertainties, any of which could cause actual results to differ from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These risks are described in greater detail in the section entitled “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 when filed with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and the Company expressly disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained herein, whether due to new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise, except as required by law.

FAQ

When will TMC submit its deep-sea mining permit applications to NOAA?

TMC plans to submit applications for exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits to NOAA in the second quarter of 2025.

How much has TMC invested in developing its nodule resources in the CCZ?

TMC has invested over half a billion dollars to understand and responsibly develop the nodule resource in their contract areas.

Why is TMC pursuing U.S. permits instead of ISA approval for deep-sea mining?

TMC is pursuing U.S. permits due to ISA's failure to adopt Exploitation Regulations and believes the U.S. offers a more stable, transparent, and enforceable regulatory path.

What environmental safeguards are in place under the U.S. deep-sea mining framework?

NOAA requires both a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the CCZ and site-specific Environmental Impact Statements, ensuring environmental protection in deep-sea mining operations.