D E E P D I V E M O D U L E 2
DEEP DIVE
MODULE 2, ELECTIVE 4
MARINE MINERAL RESOURCES: TECHNOLOGICAL
PERSEPCTIVES
LECTURE NOTES
Slide 1: Marine Mineral Resources: Technological Perspectives
Slide 2: Technological Perspectives in Ocean Management
The Management of the oceans is complex and includes quite diverse resources. The technological
perspectives are manifold, but solutions are basically deriving from scientific activities and are tested by
numerous research surveys:
Science, research and exploration were and still are the main drivers in the development of technologies
for the understanding of the global oceans, their connectivity, structure and architecture. All technologies
used were developed for scientific purposes and derived from scientific curiosity.
Knowledge Management and monitoring were advanced from scientific activities as well as from seabed
governance (i.e., fishery, or national submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
(CLCS, according to UNCLOS Article 76), and the survey for natural marine hazards, Including earthquakes
and potential tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, submarine landslides.
Resource Base assessments and Seabed Resources have been studied in detail since the 1970s and the
understanding has reached information on the commodity level to inform metal markets.
There are increasing interests in the engineering and use of sustainable and net zero geothermal, current,
and wave energy sources, often combined with the production of potable water. Concepts and test sites
have existed since the 1980s for electricity-generating turbines using tidal and wave energy, and recent
activities include the conceptual design of geothermal plants along mid-ocean ridges to produce green and
transportable hydrogen.
Potential new food resources and fish farming is reaching deeper the deeper water column but is also
limited to specific species capable of living under high pressures.
The potential identification of pharmaceuticals from marine microbiome sources has been targeted
scientifically since the late 1980s, driven by several dedicated programmes in countries with strong
biological and pharmaceutical research but with limited success. Research and exploration activities,
however, reach larger areas and ongoing marine scientific work may add to modern genetic approaches in
the development of new pharmaceuticals.
Increased research and exploration activities have identified enhanced biodiversity and mapped habitats
specific to ocean and seabed areas. Modern approaches using scientific research and knowledge in
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combination with new methods of machine learning and artificial intelligence allow for high probability
identification. Its combination with scientific characterization will lead to the protection of specific and
endangered marine habitats.
Slide 3: Technologies for Marine Mineral Resources – Challenges
There are several challenges to be addressed:
The energy transition starts and ends with metals.
Achieving global net zero is linked to base metals supply. The base metals capex needs to quadruple to
about $2 trillion USD to achieve an accelerated energy transition.
Mining in general requires exponential growth to adopt future needs but has to develop new mining skills.
In that view, decarbonising the mining industry is better to achieve by an emerging industry with an
intrinsic requirement of low environmental impacts, combined with automation, artificial intelligence,
augmented reality and robotics.
It still represents a challenge to identify existing technologies, actors, and advanced mining skills, to adapt
existing smart solutions to seabed activities and potential future exploitation and monitoring and gain a
technological and industrial share in the need for decarbonizing our societies.
Slide 4: ISA’s Technology Roadmap – Stocktaking
Any advanced and future technological perspectives for ocean sciences, marine minerals and environmental
baseline studies face important stocktaking questions, including
- Who has advanced technologies for exploration, exploitation of deep-sea mineral resources and
environmental monitoring?
- What are current projects, innovations, activities?
- Which technological developments and solutions can be expected in the near future?
- What are the critical technological gaps that constrain effective, low impact mineral mining as well
as environmental monitoring?
- Are congruent developments for flooded mines, sensors for rough terranes, NASA robotic mining,
etc. available and how do these inform ocean management?
Slide 5: ISA’s Technology Roadmap – Rationale
Marine exploration, potential future exploitation for marine minerals, and effective environmental
monitoring are emerging fields of activities to ensure future access to raw materials for low-carbon
industries from common sources with low environmental impact.
It attracts advanced technology, intelligent, low-impact and remotely operated solutions which allow for
environmentally sustainable recovery and environmental monitoring.
ISA secretariat develops a technology roadmap with concrete results and partnerships that facilitates the
full implementation of UNCLOS, allowing ISA and States Parties to initiate and promote (UNCLOS, art. 144)
(i) Programmes for the transfer of technology to the Enterprise and to developing States, (ii) Measures
directed towards the advancement of marine scientific research and the technology of the Enterprise and
the domestic technology of developing States.
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Slide 6: ISA Draft Technology Roadmap – Areas of Priority
ISA identified five prioritized areas to be further developed in its draft technology roadmap, also leveraging
technological development for the variety of technical solutions for the entire blue economy and congruent
developments for terrestrial uses in flooded mines, sensors for rough terranes, NASA robotic mining, etc.
Ocean observation is key to modern global understanding in terms of environmental protection, the
development of national and international blue economies, the security and protection of food supply, early
forecast mechanisms for and monitoring of natural hazards (earthquakes, sea-level rises, submarine
avalanches, volcanic eruptions), geological and environmental baselines, and to scientific research. Activities
include a wide range of technological approaches encompassing satellite data, ship-borne measurements,
autonomous systems, moorings and lander systems, submarine cable systems. Ocean observation requires
complex spectra of data analysis. Ocean observation requires advanced subsea ocean communication for
data acquisition and data transfer at larger distances, through the water column to a surface installation or
from a specific site via a cable system.
Monitoring includes the online, transparent, and reliable observation of all human activities in the oceans
from shipping to fishery and marine fish farming to seabed mineral exploration and potential exploitation.
Technological solutions include satellite data, ship-borne measurements, autonomous systems, moorings
and lander systems, submarine cable systems, data dashboards.
Autonomy, Automation, Robotics. Any of the formulated objectives require autonomous, automated
solutions and so do any activities in the deeper water column and on the seabed. Several ISA member
countries invested in autonomous systems (AUV) to better define their continental shelf, and the available
systems largely improve rapidly. The developments largely depend on the innovation of sensor systems. The
development of sensors capable of measuring eDNA ‘on the fly’ will largely improve the assessment and
understanding of biodiversity in the deep sea. Autonomous platforms are used to inform the Seabed2030
initiative to map the seabed at high resolution by 2030. Automation and robotic systems are cost- and time
efficient and therefore critical for any activities in the deep sea. Spin-offs exist from the O&G industry and
can be created for the land mining industry working in abandoned mining districts, open pits, deep and
drowned underground mines as well as remote habitats or for catastrophic events by natural hazards.
Machine learning by artificial intelligence (AI) represents a new frontier in all ocean activities and aspects
of the blue economy. It builds on data obtained by ocean observation and monitoring and the collection of
key information on water column and seabed habitats, mineral occurrences, potential natural hazards. AI
has the potential to model and predict all aspects of oceanography, geology, mineral resources, biodiversity,
environmental effects of all human activities.
Mining, energy and metal processing. The oceans offer a wide variety of resources including seabed
minerals and wind, wave and geothermal energy. ISA’s contractors and pioneer investors developed
technological concepts and tested innovative and advanced prototypes. Should the commercial exploitation
start based on adopted environmental regulations, the mining technologies still require innovation for best
industrial and environmental practice offering a wide field of technical, low impact and cost-effective future
improvements. Carbon-free transportation is of key importance. Cost-effective and environmental
innovation is also required for the mineral treatment and processing after recovery. Solutions are required
for zero waste approaches and for carbon-free processes. Preliminary concepts exist for the harvesting of
energy resources including offshore wind, tides, oceanographic heat and wave and seabed geothermal. All
energy resources offer a great opportunity to produce so-called green hydrogen then transported on shore.
None of these resource options have been tested at the industry level and a wide variety of technological
innovations are required for their development.
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Slide 7: Technological Design for Remote Surveys, Mining and Monitoring
In situ instruments…. Communication systems…: Ocean observation and communication and monitoring
activities rely on the installation of in situ instruments, transporting information from the seabed and the
entire water column to surface and further onto land. Most evolved solutions exists for the monitoring of
natural hazards including cabled systems (e.g., along the west coast of Canada and USA) and fixated buoys
and satellite systems (e.g., India, Indonesia) which deliver real time information to surveillance. Temporal
and floating systems are in use for local surveys (e.g., Tonga’s volcanic chain).
Central databases… Databases onshore allow for real-time data storage and use for surveillance, surveys,
and modelling to monitor the natural, technical, and industrial conditions and processes and better inform
decision-making.
Algorithms, indicators, thresholds… Quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) secure best-practice
approaches and best-available technical solutions and trigger advanced technological developments.
Modelling allows for short- to long-term forecasts and process surveillance.
Slide 8: Seabed Mineral Resources – Technological Challenges
The key marine mineral resources of the Area include polymetallic massive sulphides (PMS), polymetallic
nodules (PMN), and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts (CFC). Other potential future resources, including
marine gas hydrates, marine metalliferous sediments, marine placers, marine evaporites, and marine
phosphorite deposits, are predominately found within the continental shelf environments. The future use
of oceans’ energy is not necessarily bound to continental shelf regions but could be used in the Area as well.
The distribution of minerals and the ore deposits they may form are quite different. Cobalt-rich
ferromanganese crusts and polymetallic massive sulfides form local, 3-dimensional deposits at the 100-
1000m-scale whereas polymetallic manganese nodule deposits may occupy thousands of sq-km.
The individual shape and style of identified ore deposits require specific technological solutions peculiar to
the individual sites.
Slide 9: Technology Base – Mission Platforms
Marine minerals require mission platforms as the most important technology base. Offshore diamonds are
recovered from Namibia’s and South Africa’s shelf since 1961 with great economic success and the newest
mining vessel was just brought into service last year. Mission platforms for seabed minerals were designed
for greater water depths in the 1970s, when the interest in manganese nodules and sulfide-rich muds
increased. Up to now, there are very few seabed mining vessels existing, with the Hidden Gem being a
former Oil& Gas drill ship and being converted into and classified as a sub-sea mining vessel by the American
Bureau of Shipping for service in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. A similar example for the same region is the
ultra-deepwater drill ship Ocean Rig Olympia. Research, exploration, environmental baseline studies and
monitoring activities are provided by research vessels, capable of multi-beam echosounding for
bathymetric mapping, carrying out oceanographic surveys and geological and biological sampling through
the deployment of dedicated tools including remotely controlled and autonomous robots, sampling gears,
moorings, and lander systems. While mining vessels will be basically stationary at the mining location,
survey vessels cover larger grounds to collect information and samples critical for exploration and the
protection of the marine environment.
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Slide 10: Bathymetric Mapping: Vessel-Based to High Resolution
The global oceans are completely mapped by satellite altimetry, with resolution between 500m along the
equator and 200m at the poles. For better resolution, ship-borne and even deep-towed or autonomous
techniques are required. When the Challenger expedition in 1872 used single-beam and celestial navigation
technics, modern systems can rely on multibeam echosounding systems, satellite navigation and global
positioning system to map the seabed and have detailed information on ship’s position. Ship-borne
bathymetric measurements generally produce resolutions better than 100m on the seabed. Advances in
deep-towed and autonomous systems improved the resolution to better than a single meter providing very
detailed information on remote and deep areas of the seabed.
Slide 11: Technologies for PMN Recovery and Environmental Monitoring
Technologies for the recovery of polymetallic manganese nodules are being developed and require best-
available technological approaches for efficiency and minor impacts. Collector technologies concentrate on
efficiency, low-impact separation, and reduced sediment mobilization to reduce potential plume
development. Accompanying environmental monitoring basically uses established scientific tools to
sample, measure, determine and control the activities, but also to provide best available scientific
knowledge for the improvement of seabed technologies. These tools include autonomous and remotely
controlled robots, boxcorer, multicorer, water samplers, plankton nets, oceanographic moorings, and lander
systems.
Slide 12: Example: Equipment Development for Nodule Collection
The development of mining equipment is a multiannual research-and-development approach including
extensive lab and open water testing. The example of the collector developed by GSR shows the approach
of PMN contractors to best accommodate the technical requirements and existing natural conditions at
their deposit in the CCZ. After a first locomotion testing in 2017, the first nodules were collected in 2020 to
2021, but dropped at the seabed. Subsequent tests include the riser system for nodule transportation onto
the mining vessel. The prototype collector will be developed to its commercial size in the coming years.
Slide 13: Exploration for Minerals in the Area – Polymetallic Massive Sulphides PMS
Different ore types require different technical solutions. PMS deposits have a diameter of up to 300m on
the seabed and are identified as three-dimensional conical funnel shape. They usually narrow towards the
base. The deeper portions of the deposit are considered high-temperature during formation and therefore
Cu-(Au)-rich – as can be seen in their fossil equivalents on land. Potential mining down to 250m may account
for 10s of million tonnes of base and precious metal sulfide ores. The spatial footprint on the seabed is
minor.
Based on geological evidence, the metal endowment, localization, size, shape, and tonnages of PMS
occurrences must be assessed by remote high-resolution techniques including robotic AUV/ROV
technologies and electromagnetic measurements on the seabed.
Any mining of PMS from seafloor subsurface necessarily will involve mining activities towards depth.
Consequently, and similar to land-based deposits, an open pit mining strategy was adopted by Nautilus for
its SOLWARA deposit in Papua New Guinea between 1997 and 2019. Mining machines including continuous
miner, bulk cutter, collecting machine and lift pumps were developed. JOGMEC performed the world’s first
ore-lifting pilot test for polymetallic sulfides in August/September 2017, at a water depth of about 1,600 m
within the Okinawa Trough. JOGMEC’s concept was similar to that of Nautilus but was carried out as a multi-
ship operation. Vertical concepts adopt trench cutter operations that are in use for marine diamond
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exploitation. Available techniques can possibly accommodate the particular shape of narrow three-
dimensional and conical geological bodies better than the traditional open pit mining approach developed
for land-based deposits.
Slide 14: Exploration for Minerals in the Area – Co-rich Ferromanganese Crusts
Co-rich ferromanganese crusts grow on submarine seamounts, on hard substrate, lithified sediments or
volcanic rocks. Exploration tries to identify crust distribution patterns and thickness. Ground-truthing and
sampling occurs through drilling. Technological solutions include the combination of thickness
measurements and the separation of the crusts while leaving behind the substrate. First tests trials include
ultrasound and laser techniques.
Slide 15: Technological Perspectives for Environmental Monitoring
A series of smart technologies is necessary for effective, extensive, and comprehensive environmental
monitoring of all activities related to seabed exploration and exploitation.
Environmental assessments for the protection of natural goods like the seabed, water masses, biodiversity,
noise, and others are profound requirements set by ISA’s regulations. The data acquisition and
interpretation need tested and reliable technologies for base line studies and monitoring purposes which
will involve sensor-based and smart technologies including automation, remote surveys, artificial
intelligence etc. at very high resolutions.
Slide 16: Conceptual Design of Remote Monitoring – Data Collection
Remote monitoring requires effective data collection by different tools including lander systems, satellite-
borne radar technologies, drone technologies for observation and data collection.
Slide 17: Conceptual Design of Remote Monitoring – Mobile Instruments
Mobile instruments used for environmental monitoring are glider and float sensor systems for the regional
water column survey of contract areas to collect scientific and mining specific baseline data, to control the
distribution of potential plumes but also for navigation and weather forecasts. AUVs and ROVs, equipped
with sensor systems, are required for the near-field and local survey of activities, as well as for sampling.
Slide 18: Conceptual Design of Remote Monitoring – Data Access
The conceptual design of data access through remote monitoring includes the recovery of fixed assets
(seabed instruments, moorings) and downloading of the data not in real-time.
The data collection by a vessel with transmission to shore via Satellite (Iridium) and the combination of
acoustic (underwater) and in air (RF, Iridium) methods for submerged assets would allow near real-time
transmission.
Direct cables to shore are expensive solutions but allow for high bandwidth and high reliability applications
in real-time.
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Slide 19: Example Design of Remote Monitoring – Neptune Canada
Neptune Canada, a project by OceanNetworks Canada, is an existing project offshore Canada’s Pacific coast
and shows an example design of a cabled Remote Monitoring system. The design includes 25-year lifetime,
a 800+ km cable loop across the Juan de Fuca Plate, with 5 Nodes at depths ranging from 100 - 2,700 m. The
sensors were placed in coastal, slope, abyssal, hydrothermal and bore hole environments and collect
environmental and geological data for analyses and hazard forecast. The system offers 24/7 real-time data
from hundreds of instruments and devices.
Slide 20. Deep Dive final.