So, like, President Donald Trump made some move on Thursday that could be a game-changer for this Canadian company trying to be the first to mine minerals from the ocean floor. They’ve been wanting to get permits from the US government to do this whole deep-sea mining thing, but it’s not clear if it’s gonna work out. A lot of countries and scientists are totally against it, saying it could seriously mess up the ocean ecosystem.
This company, The Metals Company (TMC), based in Vancouver, has been struggling for years to get things going with deep-sea mining. They’re like one of the big players in the deep-sea mining game, you know? But now, the CEO, Gerard Barron, is saying they’re done with the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and all that UN stuff. He thinks the US is the way to go.
It’s been a rough road for TMC financially, you guys. They’re in deep debt and have been losing money left and right. But with Trump’s recent executive order pushing for deep-sea mining, things might start looking up for them. The order calls for mining permits to be issued under some old law from 1980, before the UN got involved. TMC is hoping this will give them the boost they need to finally get their project off the ground.
But hold up, not everyone is on board with this whole deep-sea mining thing. A bunch of countries, like France, Germany, and Canada, are calling for a ban or at least a pause on deep-sea mining. And China, who has a ton of exploration permits in the Pacific, is not happy with the US going rogue on this.
Environmentalists are also freaking out about the potential damage deep-sea mining could do. They’re saying it’s gonna wreck the ocean ecosystem and it’s just not worth it. Greenpeace is all up in arms about this, calling it a disaster waiting to happen.
TMC, though, is seeing dollar signs with Trump’s order. They’re hoping it’ll bring in some much-needed cash and investors. The CFO is talking about how this could totally change their financial situation. Who knows, maybe they’ll finally get their act together and make some money off this whole deep-sea mining thing.
But let’s be real, there are gonna be a ton of legal issues to deal with before any mining actually happens. The whole process is gonna be a nightmare, with countries potentially violating international laws left and right. It’s gonna be a mess, for sure.
So yeah, deep-sea mining is a hot mess right now. TMC is hoping for the best, but who knows what’s gonna happen next. It’s a wild ride, that’s for sure.
