TMC, the metals company focused on seafloor battery metal exploration, has set 27 June 2025, as the target date for submitting its ISA exploitation application, backed by its subsidiary Nauru Ocean Resources Inc (NORI) and Nauru Government.
This timing follows consultations with the ISA to clarify the submission and review process at its March 2025 session, ensuring greater transparency for stakeholders.
Gerard Barron, TMC’s Chairman and CEO, said years of discussion and shareholder feedback have underscored the importance of timely adoption of the Mining Code.
“After many years of conversations with current and prospective shareholders, it remains clear that the key catalyst everyone is waiting for is the delivery of the Mining Code. Following discussions with Member States and the incoming ISA Secretary-General during the UN General Assembly in September, I remain confident that the work on the Mining Code remains on track. These discussions have also informed the decision to submit the NORI application in June 2025, in consultation with Nauru. Investors can be assured that we will not be raising funds for CAPEX related to the Hidden Gem vessel until we see sufficient regulatory progress, whether through delivery of the Mining Code or additional clarity on the ISA’s review of our application based on the draft regulations.
But TMC’s value proposition extends beyond a narrow focus on the Mining Code and NORI application. We are now in a strong position to leverage our investment of over half a billion dollars and capabilities developed over the last decade-plus, as the eyes of the world’s largest economies turn to the seafloor to produce the metals needed for the energy transition, defence, infrastructure and the needs of a growing world population. I look forward to providing further colour on this strategy.”
Beyond the Mining Code, TMC is broadening its strategic scope with plans to establish a new services division for seafloor resource development and to diversify its resource portfolio globally.
In addition to its expanded strategy, TMC is implementing cost-saving measures, aiming to maintain quarterly cash usage under US$5 million post-submission as the ISA reviews NORI’s application.
As the seafloor mining industry gains momentum, TMC’s application could mark a pivotal move in the global energy and minerals landscape.
