The report concludes that substantial resources are in place on the seabed.

For several of the metals, the mineral resources are sufficient to cover many years of global consumption.

The Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) gave the NPD the assignment to assess the resource potential of seabed minerals when the opening process for mineral activity movie review started in 2020.

The MPE is responsible for stewardship of seabed minerals, and is leading the work on the opening process. The report is included as part of the opening process for seabed minerals.

“The NPD has built up expertise over many years, in part through a number of expeditions. We’ve mapped relevant areas, collected data and taken large volumes of mineral samples”, comments Kjersti Dahle, Director, Technology, Analysis and Coexistence.

“In this resource assessment, we’ve estimated how much of the various minerals might be found on the seabed in the studied area. Going forward, we will continue to reinforce the source data and the way we evaluate these resources”.

Important in the energy transition
The transition to a low-emission society enhances the need for specific elements. These elements occur, for example, in deposits on the seabed. They are important raw materials in the energy transition, and they are in demand in relation to industry.

Dahle points out that technology development, together with more and better data, will yield even better understanding of the resource potential.