Congressional Leaders Urge President Biden and the Department of Defense to Consider Polymetallic Nodules for U.S. Critical Mineral Supplies and National Security
31 Julho 2023 - 9:00AM
TMC the metals company Inc. (Nasdaq: TMC) (“TMC” or the “Company”),
an explorer of the world’s largest estimated undeveloped source of
critical battery metals, today welcomed a letter from Congressional
leaders and several members of the House Armed Services Committee
urging the Biden Administration to assess domestic processing of
seafloor polymetallic nodules as a means to secure key energy
transition metals and “close national security vulnerabilities.”
In the letter, addressed to both President Biden and Secretary
of Defense Austin, the House members led by Robert J. Wittman (R-VA
1st District), wrote: “Currently, the United States relies
significantly on foreign nations, many of them unfriendly and with
nonexistent labor and environmental standards, to meet the United
States’ present critical mineral demands. Additionally, China
dominates much of the international critical mineral supply chain
on land and is now ramping up focus on seafloor resources known to
be the largest estimated source of metals like cobalt, nickel and
manganese, presenting a national security vulnerability for the
United States…Recently, China has taken aggressive and brazen steps
to secure and process seabed resources of polymetallic nodules into
strategic planning for national security. Currently, Chinese
companies hold 5 out of 31 International Seabed Authority (ISA)
contracts for exploration and development – more than any other
country.”
In March, China’s state-owned newspaper China
Daily recognized TMC’s leadership position in the industry and
announced its intention to invest further into the development of
technologies to responsibly and economically recover seafloor
polymetallic nodules.
While the U.S. holds no such contracts as it has yet to ratify
the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the
Members wrote: “there remains an opportunity to evaluate domestic
processing and refining of seafloor resources from the contracts
held by allied parties and domestic partners in international
waters.”
TMC Chairman and CEO, Gerard Barron, said, “The U.S. faces an
acute shortage of domestic supply and processing of critical
lithium-ion battery cathode materials like cobalt, nickel,
manganese, and we welcome the growing recognition in Washington of
the narrowing window that exists to make material changes to how
and from where the U.S. sources the metals that it will need in
vast quantities for the energy transition, and other critical
sectors. By onshoring primary processing and refining of nodules,
the U.S. could secure supply and achieve mineral independence in
four metals critical for the clean energy trainsition, support
domestic companies and jobs, and drastically reduce the
environmental and social impacts that currently plague
geopolitically-complex battery material supply chains.”
In February 2022, TMC welcomed the recognition from US
political and military leaders of the potential of deep-sea
nodules to strengthen national security and re-shore supply chains
for the energy transition. In March last year, Mr.
Barron wrote to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Committee, in which he noted, “Support from the U.S. Government for
the development of the polymetallic nodules resource and TMC’s
first project, NORI-D, would unlock access to the resource without
overcoming legislative hurdles to ratify the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea.”
Previously, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a leader on energy
and critical minerals issues in the U.S. Senate, wrote a letter
urging the Department of Energy to focus on securing access to
battery raw materials and explore the potential of polymetallic
nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone of the Pacific. In reply,
Secretary Granholm confirmed, “Ongoing R&D on critical battery
minerals processing through the DOE Office of Science and the
Advanced Manufacturing Office is applicable to potential U.S.
domestic processing and refining of metallic marine nodules...DOE
is continuing to work with interagency partners to consider all
potential sources of critical minerals for the supply chain
including the role that seabed nodules could play in the
future.”
About The Metals Company The Metals
Company is an explorer of lower-impact battery metals from seafloor
polymetallic nodules, on a dual mission: (1) supply metals for the
clean energy transition with the least possible negative
environmental and social impact and (2) accelerate the transition
to a circular metal economy. The Company through its subsidiaries
holds exploration and commercial rights to three polymetallic
nodule contract areas in the Clarion Clipperton Zone of the Pacific
Ocean regulated by the International Seabed Authority and sponsored
by the governments of Nauru, Kiribati and the Kingdom of
Tonga.
More InfoMedia | media@metals.coInvestors
| investors@metals.co
Forward Looking StatementsCertain statements
made in this press release are not historical facts but are
forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor
provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words
such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,”
“anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,”
“predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook” and
similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or
trends or that are not statements of historical matters. These
forward-looking statements involve significant risks and
uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ
materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements.
Most of these factors are outside TMC’s control and are difficult
to predict. Factors that may cause such differences include, but
are not limited to: regulatory uncertainties and the impact of
government regulation and political instability on TMC’s resource
activities; changes to any of the laws, rules, regulations or
policies to which TMC is subject; the impact of extensive and
costly environmental requirements on TMC’s operations;
environmental liabilities; the impact of polymetallic nodule
collection on biodiversity in the CCZ and recovery rates of
impacted ecosystems; TMC’s ability to develop minerals in
sufficient grade or quantities to justify commercial operations;
the lack of development of seafloor polymetallic nodule deposit;
uncertainty in the estimates for mineral resource calculations from
certain contract areas and for the grade and quality of
polymetallic nodule deposits; risks associated with natural
hazards; uncertainty with respect to the specialized treatment and
processing of polymetallic nodules that TMC may recover; risks
associated with collective, development and processing operations;
fluctuations in transportation costs; testing and manufacturing of
equipment; risks associated with TMC’s limited operating history;
risks associated with TMC’s intellectual property; and other risks
and uncertainties, including those under Item 1A “Risk Factors” in
TMC’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2022, filed by TMC with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(“SEC”) on March 27, 2023, and in TMC’s other future filings with
the SEC. TMC cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not
exclusive. TMC cautions readers not to place undue reliance upon
any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date
made. TMC does not undertake or accept any obligation or
undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any
forward-looking statements to reflect any change in its
expectations or any change in events, conditions, or circumstances
on which any such statement is based except as required by law.
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