Download FixO3 - Deliverable D5.2.1: Deep Sea Mining

FixO3 - Deliverable D5.2.1: Deep Sea Mining
Project
312463 - Fixed Point Open Ocean Observatories Network
Work Package number
WP5
Work Package title
Innovation Through Industry
Deliverable number
D5.2.1
Deliverable title
Deep Sea Mining
Description
An investigation into the current status of deep sea mineral
exploitation
Lead beneficiary
SLR
Lead authors
Ciara Bannon (SLR), Nick O’Neill (SLR),
Contributors
Shane Lavery (SLR)
Submitted by
Shane Lavery
1
Table of Contents
I.
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 3
II.
Operators in the Industry ...................................................................................................................... 4
i.
Nautilus Minerals Ltd, Solwara 1 ....................................................................................................... 4
ii.
Diamond Fields International Ltd., Atlantis II Deep........................................................................... 6
iii.
Other Explorers.................................................................................................................................. 7
iv.
Neptune Minerals – Massive Sulphides ............................................................................................ 8
v.
Tonga Offshore Mining Limited (TOML) – Manganese Nodules ....................................................... 8
III.
i.
Fix O3 Companies within the industry............................................................................................... 8
Consulting Companies in the Deep Sea Mining Industry .................................................................. 8
IV.
Industry Suppliers .............................................................................................................................. 9
V.
Environmental Concerns ................................................................................................................. 10
VI.
Environmental Opportunities .......................................................................................................... 10
VII.
Industry Outlook .............................................................................................................................. 11
VIII.
Strategy Suggestion ......................................................................................................................... 11
IX.
References ....................................................................................................................................... 12
2
I.
Introduction
The concept of Deep Sea Mining (DSM) originally came to light in the 1960s and with advances in
technology and average land-based mineral deposit grades decreasing, DSM is now becoming an
increasingly attractive source of minerals. Shallow underwater deposits (<600m), such as diamonds, iron
sands and phosphate, have been exploited by resource companies for years. This short study focuses on
the area of deep sea mining (>400m). The main targets for exploitation within this sector are polymetallic
(Mn) nodules, cobalt crusts and massive sulphide deposits, which can wield high concentrations and
varying amounts of iron, lead, copper, zinc, nickel and manganese, as well as precious metals such as gold.
A summary of these resources is presented in the table below.
Target
Polymetallic
Massive
Sulphides
Metals
Cu, Pb, Zn and
precious + trace
metals
Manganese
(Polymetallic)
Nodules
Mn, iron
hydroxides, Ni,
Cu, Co, Mo, Zr,
REEs
Co, Ni, Mn, etc
Cobalt Crusts
Location and Formation
Formed by precipitation of metals leached from hydrothermal
fluids (black smokers / white smokers). Mainly occur along
major tectonic belts, back-arc basins, volcanic ridges, at very
deep – shallower depths
<1mm - >100’s mm diameter ‘potato sized’ lumps,
precipitated on deep seafloor
<250mm thick crusts occurring on flanks of seamounts, ridges,
plateaus and abyssal hills, in depths 400 – 4000m, formed by
the precipitation of metals from black smokers
The International Seabed Authority (ISA), established in 1994, is responsible for issuing and governing
exploration and mining licences (contracts) in international waters, with contracts currently only held by
government sponsored companies. The ISA is expected to release a framework governing the exploration
and mining of seabed deposits in 2016 and the current ‘Mining Code’ consists of a set of rules, regulations
and procedures issued by the ISA to regulate prospecting, exploration and marine minerals in the
international seabed area.
Mineral deposits occur at depths from 400m - >2500m and the main areas for current exploration activities
are the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone (Eastern Pacific Ocean), the Western Pacific Ocean, the South
West Indian Ridge, Mid Atlantic Ridges and the Indian Ocean. Currently, there are 26 approved projects by
the ISA with a total covered area of around 1.2 million km². Only exploration contracts have been issued by
the ISA to date. Up until May 2014, 19 applications have been approved out of which:


13 concern the exploration of polymetallic nodules, 4 for polymetallic sulphides and 2 the
exploration of cobalt-rich polymetallic crusts.
12 of the exploration projects are located in the CCZ. This area is located in international waters of
the Pacific Ocean. The remaining projects are located in the Indian Ocean (3), the Atlantic Ocean
(2) and the north-western Pacific Ocean (2).
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These 19 approved projects cover an area of 1 million km². Exploration contracts are issued for 15 years
and 6 of the current contracts will expire in 2016. A summary of the main exploration areas and their
respective current contract holders is provided in the below table.
Area
ClarionClipperton
Fracture Zone
Western Pacific
Ocean
Mid Ocean
Ridges
Indian Ocean
South West
Indian Ridge
II.
Operators/Licence Holders
Ocean Mineral Singapore Pte Ltd, UK Seabed Resources Ltd., GTec Sea Mineral Resources NV, Marawa research and
Exploration Ltd., Tonga Offshore Mining Ltd., Nauru Ocean
resources Inc., Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural
Resources of Germany, Institut français de recherche pour
l'exploitation de la mer, Deep Ocean Resources Development
Co. Ltd., China Ocean Mineral Resources Research and
Development Association, Government of the Republic of
Korea, Yuzhmorgeologiya, Interoceanmetal Joint Organization
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian
Federation, Magellan Mountains, Pacific Ocean. Japan Oil, Gas
and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC), China Ocean
Mineral Resources Research and Development Association
(COMRA)
Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer,
Government of the Russian Federation
Government of India
Target
Polymetallic
Nodules
Cobalt-Rich
Ferromanganese
Crusts
Polymetallic
Sulphides
Polymetallic
Nodules
Government of the Republic of Korea, Central Indian ridge. Polymetallic
China Ocean Mineral Resources Research and Development Sulphides
Association
Operators in the Industry
Currently, only 2 projects have published Code-compliant resources; Solwara 1 and Atlantis II Deep.
Solwara 1, discovered by Nautilus Minerals, is located in the Bismark Sea, within the Exclusive Economic
Zone of Papua New Guinea and Atlantis II is located in the central Red Sea.
i.
Nautilus Minerals Ltd, Solwara 1
Nautilus Minerals, a publically listed Canadian company jointly owned by Barrick Gold Corporation, AngloAmerican, Teck Cominco, and Epion Holdings, is currently working towards developing the world’s first
seafloor mine, with the first mining lease granted in 2011 for the Solwara 1 deposit, in the territorial waters
of Papua New Guinea. Solwara 1 is the world’s first publically reported deep sea resource.
In 2008, Golder Associates prepared a resource report, stating 870kt of indicated massive sulphide and
1300kt of inferred massive sulphide, with a 4% Cu cut off, based on 111 diamond drill holes, EM sections
and chimney sampling. The deposit occurs at depths between 1500 – 2500m, in the Manus Basin, located
approximately 30km off the coast of New Ireland. When in operation, Nautilus Minerals expects to produce
approximately $564million worth of copper and $294million worth of gold per year.
4
Fig 1: Bathymetric map taken
from Golder Associates 2008,
Resource Report 0661025-039,
showing deposit, chimney and
drill hole locations.
In 2014, Nautilus Minerals solved a dispute with the PNG government, allowing the project to proceed,
with the government of PNG taking a 15% stake in the project until first production. In April 2015, Nautilus
Minerals commenced exploration activities in the Solomon Islands, with survey services provided by
Gardline CGG Pte.
Since then, the company has been working towards operation, with the delivery of their production ship
expected by mid-2016 and of the seafloor production tool (SPTs), construction on the bulk cutter has been
completed and work on both the collecting machine and the auxiliary cutter began in 2014, with delivery
expected Q2 2015. The riser system is due to be completed Q2 2015 and the pump by 2016. Various
companies have been involved with the production ship construction, with the vessel cargo handling
equipment contract awarded to Bedeschi SPA in March 2015 and both the vessel electrical installation
contract, awarded to Siemens and the vessel cranes contract, awarded to MacGregor, in April 2015.
Fig 2: Nautilus
Minerals bulk cutter.
(http://www.nautilus
minerals.com/i/pdf/F
actsheetQ22014.pdf)
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ii.
Diamond Fields International Ltd., Atlantis II Deep
The Atlantis II Deep deposit is joint owned by Diamond Fields International and Manafa International and is
located 155km west of Jeddah, in the Red Sea, within Saudi Arabian and Sudanese jurisdiction, at depths of
approximately 2000m. It is the ‘largest marine sulphide deposit known’, with the deposit estimated at 90
million tonnes. The high grade zinc, copper, silver and gold mineralisation extends over an area of 57km²
and although an estimated $28million has been spent on exploration, mineralisation remains open at depth
(>8.5m). The project was awarded a 30 year licence to develop Atlantis II Deep however; is currently on
hold pending a dispute between Diamond Fields International and Manafa.
Fig 3: Image showing
location of Atlantis II
Deep
In 2010, the ISA published a list of potential mining sites of Massive Sulphides at ‘Inactive Hydrothermal
Vents’, placing Atlantis II Deep first. The top 5 deposit sites are displayed in the table below.
Potential Deposit Sites (ISA 2010)
Atlantis II Deep
Middle Valley Northeast Pacific
Explorer Ridge Northeast Pacific
Lau Basin Southwest Pacific
North Fiji Basin Southwest Pacific
Water Depth
2,000-2,200 m
2,400-2,500 m
1,750-2,600 m
1,700-2,000 m
1,900-2,000 m
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Jurisdiction
EEZ
EEZ
EEZ
EEZ
EEZ
Country
Saudi Arabia, Sudan
Canada
Canada
Tonga
Fiji
iii.
Other Explorers
Public, non-code compliant statements have been released by a number of other explorers, mainly based in
the Clarion-Clipperton Zone and the Western Pacific Ocean, targeting polymetallic nodules. A brief
summary of these statements, including two for phosphorite deposits, are noted in the table below
(sourced from Sterk & Stein, RSC Global Report, 2015).
Company
BGR
Exploration Area
CCZ
COMRA
CCZ
DORD
CCZ
Government of
Republic Of Korea
CCZ
IFREMER
CCZ
IOM
CCZ
MOES
Indian Ocean
NORI
CCZ
Yuzhmorgeologia
CCZ
JOMEC
Chatham Rock
Phosphate Ltd.
Western Pacific
Ocean
Western Pacific
Ocean
Chatham Rise, New
Zealand
Polymetallic
Crusts
Polymetallic
Crusts
Phosphorite
Nodules
Minemakers Ltd.
Namibia
Phosphorite
Nodules
COMRA
Deposit
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Manganese
Nodules
Polymetallic
Nodules
Polymetallic
Nodules
7
Publically Announced
>30Mt nodules over ~2000km² with
average abundance of 22.4kg/m²
Abundance >5kg/m² of Cu+Co+Ni of
>1.8% average
12.31kg/m² average abundance ‘with
cut off abundance of 7.5kg/m²’
“Measured” resource of 188.4 Mt
averaging 10.4 kg/m², and a “mineable”
resource of 113.8 Mt
Currently defining an inferred resource
‘Estimated resource of 48.1Mt of 11Mt
Mn, 0.44Mt Ni, ).43Mt Cu and 0.05Mt
Co
Identified a ‘test mine’
Geophysical mapping and seafloor
sampling
Possible ‘448 Mt (dry) at an average
grade of 1.39% Ni, 1.1% Cu, 0.23% Co
and 9.3% Mn
Exploration and sampling commenced
Exploration and sampling commenced
80Mt with average of 290kg/m² for a
contained 23.4Mt of phosphorite. The
NZ EPA refused an application to mine
by CPR in February 2015
200-330m water depth, 60km off coast
of Namibia. 98.8Mt of phosphorite at
average of 20.57% P2O5 indicated.
Progress halted due to moratorium
pending an Environmental Impact
Assessment
iv.
Neptune Minerals – Massive Sulphides
Neptune Minerals has undertaken a number of major exploration campaigns. These began in 2005 with a
scout drilling campaign in New Zealand waters and subsequent campaigns were undertaken in 2007, 2010,
2011 and 2012. In 2011, Neptune Minerals commissioned an environmental audit by Coffey Environments.
They hold licenses in Japan, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand.
v.
Tonga Offshore Mining Limited (TOML) – Manganese Nodules
TOML is 100% subsidiary of Nautilus Minerals and sponsored by the Kingdom of Tonga. In 2012 they were
awarded a 15 year exploration contract, in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone by the ISA and in September 2012
they announced an inferred resource of 440 Mt of 1.2% Ni, 0.24% Co, 1.1% Cu and 26.9% Mn, at a cut off
nodule abundance of 4kg/m2. TOML now plan to upgrade this to indicated category.
III.
Fix O3 Companies within the industry
FIXO3 partners are ideally positioned to provide a range of services required by the DSM sector, including
large scale marine environmental monitoring in the deep ocean.
i.
Consulting Companies in the Deep Sea Mining Industry
Below is a list of the main consultancy companies actively offering geological and environmental services in
the DSM sector.
Geological
Company
RCS Global
Coffeys
Overview
International Consultancy
International Consultancy
SRK Consulting
International Consultancy
Golder Associates International Consultancy
DSM related services
Research and advise to DSM industry
Provided Nautilus Minerals with an EIA for
Solwara 1, 2008 and Neptune Minerals with an
environmental audit in 2011.
Provided Nautilus Minerals with an ‘Offshore
Production System Definition and Cost Study’ in
2010
Provided Nautilus Minerals with the ‘Mineral
Resource Estimate, Solwara 1 Project’, 2008
Environmental
Company
Marine Space
MESL Marine
Ecological
Surveys
Blue Planet
Marine
SRSL
Overview
Environmental Consultants
Marine Consultants
Marine Consultants
Marine Consultants
DSM related services
Consultants with experience in sea dredging
Scientific advice on the impacts of major industrial
and construction developments in the marine
environment.
Marine consultants to oil, gas and mining
industries
Specialising in Renewable Energy, Aquaculture
and Mineral Mining
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IV.
Industry Suppliers
Numerous opportunities exist for companies supplying services and products to the DSM sector, from
direct construction of vessels and operating systems, to the provision of entire offshore exploration
services. An example of some industry suppliers are listed in the table below.
Company
Hydro-Lek
MacGregor
DeepGreen
Resources
Bauer
Products and Services Offered
Hydraulic fittings to fully integrated
telemetry-controlled robotic
manipulator systems for
integration onto ROVs and remote
access platforms
Cargo flow solutions for maritime
transportation and offshore
industries
Vessel for production of
polymetallic nodules
Rexroth
Bausch
Drill rigs for offshore foundations
(wind farms, oil&gas) and marine
exploration (SMS deposits, gas
hydrates).
Drive and control solutions for
offshore industry
Marum
Sea floor drilling rigs
Siemens
Vessel electrics
GE Oil and
Gas
Equipment and services’ providers
in the oil and gas space
OceanflORE
Integrated contact mining solutions
for mine owners
Multidisciplinary marine site survey
and 2D exploration seismic survey
Gardline CGG
Company Supplied / Comments
Website
http://www.hydro-lek.com/
Nautilus Minerals with cranes for
processing ship
http://www.cargotec.com/englobal/macgregor/pages/defa
ult.aspx
http://www.deepgreenresour
ces.com/
Secured investment for Glencore
and Glencore Xstrata contracted
to purchase Ni and Cu
https://www.bauer.de/en/bm
a/maritime_technologies/
Supply Nautilus with the entire
electrical installation for the
production support vessel
Supplying Nautilus with the
Subsea Slurry and Lift Pump
(SSLP) for their production
support vessel
http://www.boschrexroth.co
m/en/xc/industries/machinery
-applications-andengineering/offshore/offshore
https://www.marum.de/en/M
arine_Technology.html
http://www.siemens.com/ent
ry/cc/en/
https://www.geoilandgas.com
/
http://www.oceanflore.com/7
Currently supplying Nautilus
Minerals with exploration
services
9
http://www.gardline-cgg.com/
V.
Environmental Concerns
The main concern for the DSM industry, as an emerging and untested operating sector, is environmental,
with largely unknown and potentially wide spreading environmental impacts. Although the impacts would
differ depending on deposit type, the main overall effects are;




Loss of substrate;
Effects of mining on the seabed,
The operational plume and re-sedimentation and;
Discharge plume from dewatering and its effects on pelagic and/or benthic fauna.
The three deposits types are expected to return different environmental results based on the duration of
the impact, the size and area affected, the nature of the impact and the potential for recovery. The
extraction processes expected to have the greatest effects are; disaggregation, lifting and dewatering.
Aside from the direct effect of the loss of substrate and the impact of mining activities in the immediate
locality, sediment plumes generated from activities can stretch for kilometres, potentially smothering
ecosystems located well beyond the deposit site.
DSM would also have a number of socio-economic and socio-cultural impacts, such as;




Impacts on fisheries
Marine traffic
Other (e.g. Telecommunications)
Impacts on cultural/historical resources (e.g. Shipwrecks etc.)
As a result of some of the information gaps surrounding the potential environmental, social and economic
impacts of DSM, a number of anti DSM organisations have formed, such as ‘Deep Sea Mining Campaign’,
which is particularly focused on the Solwara 1 project. Nautilus Minerals has set up a ‘Community
Accountable, Responsible Environmentally and Safe’ (CARES) program to highlight their efforts to operate
in a socially and environmentally responsible way. ‘The Solwara 1 project will involve depositing 245,000
tonnes of waste rock onto the seabed and releasing 10 million tonnes of contaminated water into the
ocean per year’ (Mining.com, 2013).
In 2013, the ‘SPC-EU Deep Sea Minerals Project’ was initiated with the aim on improving the governance
and management of the deep sea mineral resources of the Pacific Community (SPC), with ‘particular
attention to the protection of the marine environment and securing equitable financial arrangements for
Pacific Island countries and their people (http://www.sopac.org/dsm/).
VI.
Environmental Opportunities
A significant opportunity exists for companies operating in the marine environmental monitoring sector.
The ISA has issued a series of environmental recommendations and guidelines for contract holders. A
number of suggestions were proposed at an ISA held workshop in 2011. Resulting from this, it was
proposed that operators will be required to submit a full EIS as part of a mining application and will be
required to provide a detailed account of;




The regional overview of the offshore environment
Studies Completed
Special considerations for the site
Meteorology and air quality
10






Geological setting
Physical oceanographic setting
Water quality
Sediment characteristics
Biological environment (pelagic, mid water and benthic)
Noise
Applicants will be required to submit details of plans surrounding the organisational structure and
responsibilities of the proposed environmental team, the environmental management system and plan,
including the monitoring plan and closure plan. Chapters outlining the environmental impacts, mitigation
and management measures, description of potential impact categories, results of mining operations and
detailed descriptions of the proposed environmental management measures, will also be required. It is
clear that large scale marine environmental monitoring will be a necessary component of any DSM
operation in the future.
VII.
Industry Outlook
The world’s undersea reserves are estimated to include 10 billion tonnes of polymetallic nodules, with an
average grade of ~30% manganese, 1.5% nickel, 1.5% copper, and 0.3% cobalt and a variety of minor REE’s.
$150 trillion+ worth of gold are estimated to be in the seabed, (Pros and Cons of Deep Sea Mining, 2013).
As such, the prospectively of the seafloor is very high and the potential economic returns substantial.
‘Japanese geologists estimate that a single 2.3 km2 patch of seafloor might contain enough rare earth
materials to sustain global demand for a year’ (Michael Lodge via World Economic Forum).
However, in its infancy, the industry faces a number of significant challenges including technological
challenges of extraction and operation, environmental, legislative and socio-economic issues. The current
aim of the ISA, which governs exploration and mining in international waters, is the have a financial, fiscal
framework for exploitation in place by 2016. It is expected that once a framework is in place, seabed
exploration activities will be opened up to private companies and as such, activity in this sector is
expected to increase. If the Nautilus Minerals Solwara 1 project goes into operation (potentially as
early as 2016 – 2017) and the operational and environmental management issues surrounding such a
project prove both achievable and economic, the DSM sector could expect to see significant expansion
as a viable source of, to date, wholly untapped mineral deposits and it is clear that large scale marine
environmental monitoring will be a critical part of any DSM operation in the future.
VIII.


Strategy Suggestion
FIXO3 partners should target the DSM sector, to provide deep sea environmental monitoring
services.
FIXO3 representatives should the 2016 Deep Sea Mining Summit (2015 Summit held in Scotland in
February)
11
IX.
References
Sterk, R. & Stein, J.K. (2015), ‘Seabed Mineral Resources: A Review of Current Mineral Resources
and Future Developments’. Paper presented to: Deep Sea Mining Summit. Aberdeen, Scotland, 910 February 2015
Lipton, I (2008), ‘Mineral Resource Estimate, Solwara 1 Project, Bismark Sea, Papua New
Guinea’. Canadian NI43-101 form F1. Golder Associates Report
ECORYS. ‘Study to investigate state of knowledge of deep sea mining’, Final report Annex 6
Environmental Analysis, FWC MARE/2012/06 – SC E1/2013/04.
The International Seabed Authority in collaboration with the Government of Fiji and the SOPAC
Division of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Nadi, Fiji, ISA Technical Study: No.
10. ‘Environmental Management Needs for Exploration and Exploitation of Deep Sea Minerals’,
Report of a workshop held by from 29 November to 2 December 2011,
‘Deep Sea Mining: The new resource frontier?’ Michael Lodge, World Economic Forum,
http://reports.weforum.org/outlook-global-agenda-2015/future-agenda/emerging-issues-deep-seamining/
UNEP Global Environmental Alert Service (GEAS), ‘Wealth in the Oceans: Deep sea mining on the
horizon?’ http://www.unep.org/pdf/GEAS_May2014_DeepSeaMining.pdf
‘Pros and cons of Deep Sea Mining, Infographic, 2013, www.miningaustralia.com.au/features/thepros-and-cons-of-deep-sea-mining
http://deepsea-mining-summit.com/access/index
http://reports.weforum.org/outlook-global-agenda-2015/future-agenda/emerging-issues-deep-seamining/
www.sopac.org/dsm/
www.mining.com
www.nautiliusminerals.com
www.diamondfields.com
www.whoi.edu/main/topic/seafloor-mining
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