India plans to apply for licences to explore deep-sea minerals in the Pacific Ocean, aiming to secure supplies of critical minerals essential for energy transition technologies. This initiative was revealed by M. Ravichandran, a leading scientist at India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences, in an interview with Reuters.
The United Nations-backed International Seabed Authority (ISA) has issued a total of 31 deep-sea exploration licences, including two for India in the Indian Ocean. However, mining activities have not yet commenced as the ISA, consisting of 36 member states, is still developing regulations for deep-sea mining.
The ISA council is currently convening in Jamaica to negotiate the latest draft of a mining code. As part of its strategy, India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences plans to collaborate closely with the domestic mining industry to prepare for licence applications in the upcoming year.
India’s ambitions in the Pacific have not been previously reported, and it aims to target the Clarion-Clipperton Zone—a vast underwater plain located between Hawaii and Mexico. This area is known to contain significant volumes of polymetallic nodules, which are rich in minerals like manganese, nickel, copper, and cobalt, all of which are crucial for the production of electric vehicles and solar panels.
These potato-shaped nodules were first discovered by British sailors in 1873 and take millions of years to form.