WASHINGTON, DC (May 4, 2023)–In response to shipping giant Maersk dropping its investment in the deep sea mining company The Metals Company, Arlo Hemphill, Greenpeace USA Deep Sea Mining Campaign Lead, said: “We welcome the news that another major investor has withdrawn from the destructive deep sea mining industry. TMC has portrayed the launch of deep sea mining as a foregone conclusion, but Maersk’s departure just magnifies the growing concerns about the company and the idea of basing an industry on destroying a vital ecosystem. The deep sea is a shared resource that belongs to all of humanity. We urge other corporations to step up and act responsibly: drop the deep sea mining industry.”
Maersk is the most recent major company to sell its seabed mining interests. Lockheed Martin sold UK Seabed Resources, which possesses licenses for two Pacific Ocean seabed exploration contracts, in March. Leading technology and electric vehicle companies Rivian, Renault, BMW, Volkswagen, Volvo Group, Scandia, Google, and Samsung SDI have supported the call from scientists and civil society organizations for a moratorium on the practice. The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative has also urged investors to transition away from the industry.
Negotiations in March at the International Seabed Authority in Jamaica left the seabed at the mercy of a profit-focused deep sea mining industry, despite more governments calling for a precautionary pause. The next meeting of the ISA has been set for late July.
TMC is one of the major proponents of deep-sea mining and the most active corporation in the sector, having conducted the first pilot testing. The corporation through its wholly-owned subsidiary NORI and the Republic of Nauru initiated negotiations for the legalization of deep-sea mining in the Pacific Ocean in June 2021 when they submitted an application to the United Nations-affiliated International Seabed Authority.
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Contact: Tanya Brooks, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, P: 703-342-9226, E: [email protected]
Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.
