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By Lars-Kristian Trellevik, Jan Arvid Ingulfsen

Swire Seabed is dedicated to being at the forefront of the Autonomous Subsea Revolution. The company is currently working along and developing operational, technical and market strategies where autonomous technology is the driving force. Swire Seabed’s vessel Seabed Constructor is currently mobilized and operating eight Hugin AUVs and 6 Surface going USVs. This significant and revolutionary spread is owned by Ocean Infinity. Ocean Infinity and Swire Seabed is currently involved in the search for the missing MH370 – in about 3 months the vessel and autonomous spread have fine combed an area of deep sea floor spanning over more the 100 000 km2 . With such a considerable spread with a depth rating of 6000 meter – Swire Seabed and Ocean Infinity is challenging long held paradigms in subsea mapping and resource surveys. Highly accurate and precise data can be acquired for large areas in record time, and at a comparatively much reduced cost. As one earlier required several vessels and associated crews and logistical support – Swire Seabed and Ocean infinity are now able to operate a large number of AUVs and USVs, through technological advances in automatic data-processing and interpretation, from a single offshore vessel. This opens up vast possibilities for emerging markets such as subsea-minerals. Swire Seabed is also developing strong collaborative relationships with academic institutions. Along with UIB Swire Seabed is developing methodology for deep sea geological and geophysical resource searches applying AUVs at an industrial scale – this work is based on UIBs groundbreaking work and significant experience in the same fields. In particular Swire Seabed and K.G Jebsen Centre for Deep Sea Research (UIB) have developed methodologies for conducting detailed Seep-Searches at a large geographical scale. UIB and Swire Seabed is further pursuing a formalized long term relationship for academic and industrial cooperation and exchange in AUV operation and methodology development. Whilst K.G Jebsen Centre for deep sea research have been involved in basig deep sea research for years, Swire Seabed have specialized in cost-effective heavy duty operations in water depths greater the 3500 meters. This collaboration affords the subsea mining community a unique pool of both insight and operational capacity.

Jan 1, 2018

By Peter B. Hale

Canada has a long history of marine-related industry and onshore mining. Even so, commercial interest in marine mining, excluding seawater mineral extraction and offshore extensions of hardrock deposits such as iron and coal, has been sporadic; despite the fact that shelf mineral deposits supply a significant proportion of the national market requirements for many countries. Several factors have accounted for this including: a relative abundance of onland mineral desposits; the fact that onland deposits can be mined using conventional technology; and, a general lack of knowledge and public awareness as to Canadian offshore non-fuel mineral resource potential. In the mid-1970s the Department of Energy, Mines & Resources formed the Departmental Coordinating Committee on Ocean Mining. The Committee addressed the question of shelf non-fuel mineral resource potential and concluded that, while several reports had raised the possibilty of this alternative source, there had not been a systematic evaluation of the resource base. This led to the formation of a Shelf Working Group, whose task it was to outline and implement a departmental program to advance our knowledge of shelf resource potential. A methodology was devised that utilized existing geoscientific and hydrographic

Jan 1, 1985

By Derek V. Ellis

A stepwise implementation of seven criteria for screening the physical, chemical and environmental suitability of submarine tailing disposal (STD) at coastal mines is presented. It is expected that similar criteria would be relevant to future deepwater mining. A reconnaissance level study of four preliminary criteria: mine location; coastal bathymetry; feasible outfall locations; and potential for chemical contamination can support or eliminate the prospects for STD. If supportive, detailed, and far more time-consuming hence costly surveys of: environmental background information including oceanography and waste discharge characteristics; projected impacts on other resource uses plus regulatory and community concerns will be essential for environmental protection and to secure the necessary approvals. This review of STD systems on which the proposed screening criteria were based was undertaken by a Cooperative Agreement of the U.S. Bureau of Mines, Alaska Field Operations Center with the University of British Columbia.

Jan 1, 1994

By Sophia Katsouri

Hydrothermal circulation that produces sulfide deposits in the marine environment can also produce sulfide deposits in lakes. The major differences in terms of process are (1) in lakes the hydrothermal fluid is meteoric water of low salinity whereas in the marine setting it is saline and (2) the rocks that are leached of metals to produce the deposits are continental crust in one case and oceanic crust in the other. We have examined sulfides that are presently forming in two lakes ? Lake Tanganyika in east Africa and Lake Oyunuma in Hokkaido, Japan. Tanganyika is the second largest lake in the world and the second deepest rift lake, after Lake Baikal in southeastern Siberia. Two hydrothermal fields are known in its northern basin at Pemba and Cape Banza (Tiercelin et al., 1993). At Pemba, CO2 and CH4-rich, low temperature (53-88°C) hydrothermal fluids are forming decimeter-tall chimneys at 2-46 m water depth. Our microscopic and x-ray diffraction study of samples from the Pemba site reveal marcasite and pyrite to be the most common sulfides. Minor minerals include barite, hematite, bornite and chalcopyrite. Quartz and feldspar are also identified and were probably incorporated from the surrounding lake sediments. At Cape Banza, aragonite chimneys, up to 70 cm high, are venting fluids at 66-103°C.

Jan 1, 2001

By Demoor Damien

"The exploitation of marine resources has enjoyed renewed interest with a completely new sector, that of the Deep Sea Mining of mineral resources in the seabed, that is now gaining momentum. Nevertheless, the significant environmental constraints represent a challenge for initiating these new activities, whether this is in terms of the knowledge of the concerned ecosystems or in terms of monitoring and minimizing the impact of these new activities. This paper presents 2 technologies that aim to respond to the expectations of the stakeholders in this area. The first consists of the real-time monitoring of installations/operations and their impact on the environment using the most modern underwater technologies and especially long-term deployment AUV based on AUV docking station solution and autonomous long term observatories. The second consists of a membrane allowing the confinement of an area, the reduction of the emission of particles in suspension and noise reduction.IntroductionDeep ocean environments have been explored since the mid-1800s. As the land-based reserves of hydrocarbons and minerals become depleted, increasing numbers of resourcebased projects are being proposed for shallow then deepwater environments. Two distinct resource sectors have recognized the potential commercial value of working in shallow and deepwater environments – Oil and Gas and now Mining."

Jan 1, 2017

By Lénaick Menot, Anne-Sophie Alix, Charline Guérin, Sébastien Ybert, Ewan Pelleter, Florian Besson

Ifremer, on behalf of the French government, holds an Exploration Contract with the ISA for polymetallic nodules in the CCFZ. As part of its exploration activities, the NODULE (2015) cruise was conducted to acquire a 50 m resolution bathymetric coverage of the eastern sectors of the Contract. In 2017, Ifremer initiated an update of the Contract’s mineral resource estimate. Metal grades and nodule abundance were modelled using ordinary kriging. The inferred mineral resource is 436 Mt (wet) of polymetallic nodules at an average abundance of 10.7 kg/m² with a cut-off grade of 7 kg/m². Based on the geological data, seamounts, sedimentary basins and steep slopes contain no nodules. Technical studies of most of the contractors have determined that nodule collectors could not maneuver on slopes above 5 to 10°. Thus, Ifremer has selected a quite conservative slope threshold of 7 % (about 4°) and a backscatter threshold of -29.5 dB to delineate nodule-free areas. This has a significant impact on the resource estimate, as about 54 % of the eastern Contract areas are excluded. Near-seafloor high-resolution mapping and photographic transects, associated with finer-spaced box-core sampling could constitute a next step to better constrain the mineable areas and to get a higher level of confidence in the resource estimation.

Jan 1, 2018

By Lénaick Menot, Anne-Sophie Alix, Charline Guérin, Sébastien Ybert, Ewan Pelleter, Florian Besson

Ifremer, on behalf of the French government, holds an Exploration Contract with the ISA for polymetallic nodules in the CCFZ. As part of its exploration activities, the NODULE (2015) cruise was conducted to acquire a 50 m resolution bathymetric coverage of the eastern sectors of the Contract. In 2017, Ifremer initiated an update of the Contract’s mineral resource estimate. Metal grades and nodule abundance were modelled using ordinary kriging. The inferred mineral resource is 436 Mt (wet) of polymetallic nodules at an average abundance of 10.7 kg/m² with a cut-off grade of 7 kg/m². Based on the geological data, seamounts, sedimentary basins and steep slopes contain no nodules. Technical studies of most of the contractors have determined that nodule collectors could not maneuver on slopes above 5 to 10°. Thus, Ifremer has selected a quite conservative slope threshold of 7 % (about 4°) and a backscatter threshold of -29.5 dB to delineate nodule-free areas. This has a significant impact on the resource estimate, as about 54 % of the eastern Contract areas are excluded. Near-seafloor high-resolution mapping and photographic transects, associated with finer-spaced box-core sampling could constitute a next step to better constrain the mineable areas and to get a higher level of confidence in the resource estimation.

Jan 1, 2018

By S. Naidu, J. Kelley, Roger Amato

The Alaskan Continental Shelf covers 76 % of the total shelf area of the United States. There are a lot of potential gravel deposits in the Alaskan offshore region. The gravel resources are currently not feasible for mining for the following reasons (U.S Congress, 1987): 1. Much of the glacial gravel is poorly sorted. 2. Gravel deposits are overlain by sandy and muddy layers. With the sea level expected to rise 70 cm in the next 100 years (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, 2001; Day, 2004), erosion of coastlines will be a major problem not only in Alaska but worldwide. Hence beach nourishment projects designed to minimize erosion will require large volumes of sand and gravel. Offshore areas will become a logical source for the fill material because of their proximity and ready availability. It is likely that future supply of coarse aggregate in Alaska may involve exploitation of marine deposits. The Chukchi Sea is a potentially favorable region for this type of mining because of extensive deposits of paleo beach and other relict gravel found in the near shore region (Stauffer, 1987). However a systematic analysis of potential gravel resource has not yet been conducted and it is the purpose of this research to estimate the size, extent and variability of gravel material that may be available in the continental shelf, offshore Kivalina.

By J. R. Woolsey

Research grants of The Marine Minerals Technology Center (MMTC) are directed toward development of the technology 'for exploration, mining, and processing of non-fuel mineral resources within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. FY 1989-90 research grants are as follows: - Seafloor Gamma Measurement Data Collection System. - Free-Fall Seafloor Hard Substrate Corer. - Microtopography of Manganese Crust Deposits. - Cobalt Crust Continuum on Seamounts, EEZ, Hawaii. - Economics of Marine Polymetallic Sulfide Resources. - Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometer. - Depositional Models for Aggregate and Heavy Mineral Exploration. - Sand Resources of Heald and Sabine Banks, Texas. - Sources, Geometries, and Compositions of Heavy Mineral Placers. - Geostatistical Methods for Marine Placer Exploration. - Computer Aided Design for Communication and Strength Umbilicals.

Jan 1, 1989

By V. Zaykov

The Urals massive sulfide deposits are concentrated in Silurian -Devonian fold belt extending for 1500 km with length from 50 to 150 km. By paleodynamic reconstmction it is established that they were formed in submarine parts of island arcs, in inter arc and back arc basins, marginal seas. When "black smokers" were found in rift zones of present oceans, problem searching their analogues in the Urals Paleozoic complexes was arisen. For solving this problem and demonstration of seafloor origin of massive sulfide many quarries and drill cores were carefully sketched and studied. Particular attention was given to correlation between ores and synchronous sedimentary rocks and fossils. Various laboratory methods were used for comparing sulfides from ore hills with ore-clastic sulfides.

Jan 1, 1993

By Det Juridiske Fakultet, Maria Madalena das Neves

The ocean is increasingly seen as the answer for a myriad of challenges facing humankind. In effect, in addition to being vital for transportation and communication, the oceans contain living and non-living resources that are essential to meet the demand for food, and to the development of pharmaceutical products, energy resources, and high-technology products. This entails that the oceans are under pressure by different activities: navigation, fishing, oil and gas exploration and production, renewable energy development, laying of cables and pipelines, marine scientific research, bioprospecting, and deep-sea mining for minerals and metals. The growing demand for essential minerals and metals such as cobalt, nickel, zinc, copper, and manganese, seen in tandem with technological advances in deep-sea mining, makes the latter an increasingly attractive activity, both in areas within and beyond national jurisdiction. At the same time, the further development of deep-sea mining adds to the problem of the competing uses of maritime space and accentuates the need to balance and articulate the interests of the different users of the seas (States, sponsored deep-sea mining investors, oil and gas investors, fishermen, shippers, etc.). Furthermore, as deep-sea mining activities increase and move on to an exploitation phase so does the possibility of new disputes (for instance during deep-sea mining exploitation a communication’s cable is severed, a vessel conducting deep-sea bottom fisheries damages deep-sea mining equipment, etc.).

Jan 1, 2018

By Robert M. Owen

Geochemical exploration for marine placers involves the acquisition, processing, and interpretation of geochemical data. Recent technological advances such as in-situ analysis systems and microcomputers have greatly improved our ability to acquire and process data, but their full benefits cannot be realized until we also develop improved methods for reducing and interpreting large amounts of raw geochemical data. Toward this end, our research has sought to identify existing and/or develop new geostatistical techniques for use in marine placer exploration. Each technique has been tested by evaluating its performance in the analysis of existing data sets. The data sets typically include the results of chemical analyses of suites of sediment samples collected from areas of known or suspected platinum and gold placers along the Bering Sea coast of Alaska. Results to date indicate that three geostatistical methods (subpopulation partitioning analysis, comparative factor analysis, and end-member compositional factor analysis) are useful in identifying elemental groups which can serve as "pathfinders" in the search for marine placers, and are also helpful in discerning the generic geochemical basis under lying observed statistical correlations between pathfinder elements and placer minerals. Existing methods of modelling sediment dispersal patterns have been examined with a view toward adapting them to the specific problem of understanding placer formation in

Jan 1, 1986

By R. Moss

Gold and silver are important byproducts of mining volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits. Both metals occur in VMS deposits ranging in age from the Archean to the currently forming massive sulfides found on the ocean floor. The gold- and silver-rich deposits on the modern seafloor are geographically diverse and occur in several different tectonic settings (Figure 1a,b) including seamounts (e.g. Franklin Seamount, Papua New Guinea), unsedimented mid ocean ridges (e.g. TAG and Snakepit, Mid Atlantic Ridge), sedimented mid ocean ridges (e.g. Escanaba Trough) and back-arc basins (e.g. Manus Basin, Papua New Guinea). Interestingly, the most gold- and silver-rich deposits are found in the back-arc basins of the western Pacific, commonly associated with differentiated volcanic rocks such as the dacite-rhyodacite suite at PACMANUS in the eastern Manus Basin. This suggests that different, or more efficient, mechanisms are concentrating precious metals in such back-arc settings. Such mechanisms may include leaching of volcanics enriched in gold (e.g. rifted arc crust) or silver (e.g. continental crust) and/or the introduction of gold into a hydrothermal system by a magmatic fluid. The gold content of modern seafloor precipitates varies from a few ppb up to a high of 54 ppm reported from eastern Manus Basin (1). The Jade Deposit in the Okinawa Trough has the highest silver contents with values up to 1.1% (2). Both gold and silver are preferentially concentrated in late-stage, low temperature precipitates with zinc-rich assemblages being favoured in most cases. Gold is found as relatively pure native gold and sub-microscopic inclusions in gold-rich deposits, but occurs predominantly as sub-microscopic inclusions and possibly as solid solution in the gold-poor deposits (3). Silver occurs as rare silver minerals such as acanthite and native silver in the silver rich Jade deposit (2), but more commonly in the silver-containing minerals tetrahedrite and tennantite, as is the case in the PACMANUS deposit. Tetrahedrite is also known to be an important host of silver in ancient VMS deposits (4). More abundant sulfides can contribute significantly to the silver balance. In the silver-poor deposits at 21 N East Pacific Rise, silver is contained entirely within chalcopyrite, isocubanite, pyrite, marcasite, sphalerite/wurtzite and galena. In this case silver may be present as sub-microscopic inclusions of silver minerals or in solid solution.

Jan 1, 2011

By Justin C. I. Baulch, Robina Sharpe, Steven J. Downey, John P. Feenan, Kate M. Perrin

Since becoming a public company in October 2005, Neptune Minerals has continued to advance its primary aims. Major achievements in the last year have been: • Successful completion of two simultaneous New Zealand exploration programs, Kermadec 2007 (K-07) and Colville-Monowai 2007 (CM-07); • New discovery of an inactive SMS field on the Rumble II West seamount; • Focused exploration license applications over quality areas of known SMS mineralization in arc and back-arc settings in Japan, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Northern Marianas Islands (CNMI), Palau, and Italy; • Granting of licenses covering some 200,326 km2 of arc and back-arc within the EEZ of PNG and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM); • Targeting of an additional mineralization style with extensive applications in PNG covering Conical Seamount-style Au-rich epithermal mineralization; • Welcoming Newmont Mining, one of the World’s largest mining companies, as a major shareholder; • Commissioning a scoping study to investigate options for mining and processing of SMS; Marine Minerals of the Pacific: Science, Economics and the Environment UMI2007 · The University of Tokyo, Japan Baulch 2 37th Underwater Mining Institute · 15-20 October 2007 • Invitation to contribute to, and participate in, the Meteor M73/2 Tyrrhenian Sea research program. The Company has granted exploration licenses covering 263,000 km2 in New Zealand, FSM and PNG, and a further 362,000 km2 under application in Japan, PNG, Vanuatu, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau and Italy.

By Michael J. Cruickshank

The University of Hawaii, Ocean Basins Division (OBD) shares, equally with the University of Mississippi, Continental Shelf Division (CSD), congressional funding for the Marine Minerals Technology Center, a Generic Minerals Center under the U.S. Department of the Interior's Mineral Institutes Program. The State of Hawaii supports the program by the provision of salaries for the Executive and Technical Directors and by the provision of fiscal, administrative, and facilities support through the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, the Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii, and the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology. The Center's program of research, technology development and education is multi-disciplinary and international in scope. Activities since the MMTC/OBD was established in June 1988 have included: Research projects * Development of a Free-Fall Seafloor Hard Substrate Corer. * The Microtopography of Manganese Crust deposits. * Evaluation of the Cobalt Crust Continuum on Seamounts in the Hawaiian Exclusive Economic Zone. * Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometer. * Computer Aided Design Methodology for Power, Communication and Strength Umbilicals. * Characterization and Environmental Impact Assessment of Tropical * Reef-derived sands for Beach Replenishment.

Jan 1, 1991

By Arturo Carranza Edwards

One hundred ninety nine beach face sand samples from an equal number of beaches from the Mexican Pacific were studied. Based on petrological and chemical analysis some locations have been studied in more detail. Black sands from the following areas are discussed: (1) west Baja California Peninsula, where black sands rich in magnetite and ilmenite have maximum values of 50% iron and 14% titanium in the very fine sand fraction; (2) east Gulf of California, in its northern portion, the black sands show maximum values of 43% iron and 5% titanium in the fraction 2 to 4 0;-(3) the south Mexican Pacific, characterized mainly by medium sands, moderately well sorted, show that the fine sand fractions reach values of 35% iron and 41% titanium. X-ray fluorescence applied on selected samples constituted by feldsarenites and lithic feldsarenties, showed the presence of rare elements in some of the studied samples.

Jan 1, 1994

By Georgy A. Cherkashov

Two principal types of the hydrothermal fields in Atlantic - axial and off-axis - could be established based on their structural setting in the rift zone of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) (Figure1). The first (axial) type is represented by five high- and three low-temperature hydrothermal sites (Table 1). All of these fields are connected with young axial effusive volcanism and related to large linear volcanic ridges or central volcanoes at the inner floor of the rift valley. The hydrothermal activity here is controlled by the intersection between longitudinal magma feeding faults and transverse weakened zones characterized by high permeability. [ ] The hydrothermal sites of the second (off-axis) type (such as Rainbow, TAG, 24°30?N, Logatchev, newly discovered 13°N (Figure 2) and possibly 16°48?N sites) are related to large tectonic dislocations forming marginal scarps of the rift valley as well as transverse discontinuities.

Jan 1, 2003

By John Parianos

2013 has seen good progress for Nautilus Minerals and our projects due to the determination of our people and the continued support from shareholders and stakeholders. Our focus remains Solwara 1 in Papua New Guinea for which the build continues on the seafloor production tools, subsea slurry pump and riser and lifting system.

Sep 14, 2011

By Joshua Brien

DEEP SEABED MINING IN NATIONAL JURISDICTION: KEY CHALLENGES The talk focuses on the key challenges that arise from deep-seabed mineral exploration and development within areas of national jurisdiction, including legal and institutional challenge and options to address these challenges. Joshua Brien has acted for a range of Governments throughout the world, including smallisland States and the developing world. This has included engagement in matters before the International Court of Justice, the Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in contentious and advisory proceedings, including provisional measures applications and prompt release cases.

Jan 1, 2018

By H. Shimoda, K. Tamaki, K. Iizasa, M. Watanabe, K. Okamura

Modern Kuroko-type deposits occur in submarine calderas of island-arc fronts and back-arc rifts in Japan. They occur primarily on or adjacent to caldera boundary faults. Hydrothermal sulfides in the Myojinsho submarine caldera are one of Kuroko-type deposits, but their occurrence is different from other deposits found within the area 200 km2 around the Quaternary volcanic front of Izu-Ogasawara arc.

Aug 24, 2006