NOAA Advances Environmental Review for TMC’s Seabed Mining…

Event summary

NOAA published a Notice of Intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement for TMC USA’s USA-B exploration license application.
The USA-B area covers ~122,000 km² of seafloor with an estimated 1.02 billion tonnes of polymetallic nodules.
NOAA certified the USA-B application on May 26, 2026, and will now proceed with public comment and final determination.
TMC has conducted over a decade of environmental research, with 41 peer-reviewed studies based on its dataset.

The big picture

The NOAA’s advancement of the EIS for TMC’s USA-B exploration license marks a critical step in the regulatory pathway for deep-seabed mining. As governments and industries seek alternative sources for critical metals essential to the energy transition, the transparency and rigor of this process will set a precedent for future seabed mining ventures. The scale of the USA-B area and its estimated resource potential underscore the strategic importance of this development in the broader context of sustainable mineral supply chains.

What we're watching

Regulatory Timing: The pace at which NOAA finalizes the EIS and issues the exploration license will determine TMC’s operational timeline.
Public and Academic Scrutiny: The volume and nature of public comments during the EIS process could influence NOAA’s final decision and conditions.
Scientific Data Expansion: The exploratory activities under the USA-B license may generate significant new data, potentially shaping future seabed mining policies.