The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has determined The Metals Company’s application for deep sea mining permits meets all requirements under federal law, marking a significant step toward potential commercial seafloor operations in the Pacific Ocean. TMC announced NOAA found the consolidated application submitted by subsidiary The Metals Company USA LLC fully compliant with the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act and its implementing regulations. The application seeks both an exploration license and commercial recovery permit for polymetallic nodules in international waters. NOAA previously determined the application achieved substantial compliance in March. The latest determination moves the review process into its…
Author: TJ Markle
Rescuers have recovered the bodies of all eight miners trapped after a coal mine collapsed in the remote Magadan region of Russia’s Far East, emergency officials confirmed Monday. The disaster occurred last Thursday at a site operated by the Kolymskaya Coal Company. Alexander Nesterovich, the company’s CEO, said the collapse was likely caused by melting permafrost. An initial rockslide buried a heavy machinery driver, followed by a second collapse that buried seven other workers who rushed to rescue him. After four bodies were found on Sunday, Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry told the Interfax news agency that the final four victims were located…
Rio Tinto, Resource Minerals International and Sidney Resources led April’s Global Mining Power Rankings in their respective categories, highlighting how geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions and shifting commodity demand are reshaping investor priorities. Sentiment drove markets this month. Conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran lifted energy and shipping costs, disrupted supply chains and increased volatility across key metals. Higher oil prices are pushing up operating costs across the global economy, while shipping delays are tightening supply, particularly for aluminum and battery materials. Rising prices for commodities such as nickel and lithium, along with renewed “mining supercycle” sentiment, supported broad sector bullishness…
The News Tribune’s April 22 “Our View” editorial lauding the reversal of the 20-year moratorium on mining on federal lands upstream from the Boundary Waters displayed an unfortunate eagerness to credit copper mining industry propaganda. I am not anti-mining. My grandfather was an Ely iron miner. But there are some places too valuable and too vulnerable for copper mining — and the headwaters of the Boundary Waters is one such place. The editorial (“ Federal action gives modern mining the chance it deserves ”) was littered with factual errors. Northland Outdoor Forecast: Warmer weather for the start of May The…
Global demand for critical minerals, used to build drones and electric cars, is surging, setting of a new wave of criminality in the world’s largest rainforest. The Amazon rainforest has been plundered for decades for rubber, timber and gold. Now, seeking a new treasure, illegal prospectors are setting their sights on the critical minerals coveted by much of the world. A new frontier of criminality is emerging in the Brazilian Amazon, the authorities and experts say, with global demand for these minerals — used in many key products, like electric vehicles and fighter jets — setting off a rush of…
In the backdrop of an effort to increase American energy production and mineral exploration, Montana Republican Sen. Tim Sheehy and Democratic counterpart from Delaware, Sen. Tim Coons, introduced a bill Friday to “unmask” Chinese labor abuses in Africa. A press release announcing the legislation said it “underscores the cost of reliance on rogue states like China” that supply critical minerals the United States needs. The legislation would essentially create a list of each Chinese entity that uses child labor or causes environmental harm. If passed, the Secretary of State would be directed to update the list of mining entities controlled…
Hundreds demonstrated in the Dominican Republic on Sunday to protest Canadian company GoldQuest’s proposed mining project. The so-called Romero project aims to extract deposits of gold, copper and silver from a reserve of 1.1 million ounces, valued at around US$5 billion, according to GoldQuest. The project would be located in Central Cordillera, far from tourist areas, near the southern province of San Juan where the agriculture-based economy supports 143,000 residents. Although the project still does not have the necessary permit, GoldQuest hails the Dominican government’s “commitment” to moving forward with the project on its website. “Water yes, gold no!” protesters…
Europe just found something massive buried under Norway, and it’s making China very nervous. Europe’s largest rare earth deposit just got considerably bigger. On March 3, 2026, Rare Earths Norway announced that its Fen Carbonatite Complex in Telemark, southern Norway, had grown 81 percent since the previous evaluation in 2024, reaching 15.9 million metric tons of total rare earth oxide content. The estimate, prepared under the internationally recognized JORC Code by consulting firm WSP, is based on roughly 30,000 meters of drill core analyzed to date, including 10,000 meters drilled during a 2025 campaign. Two years ago, the same deposit was estimated at 8.8…
Two enormous sandlike dunes at an old chemical processing plant in South Africa are at the center of an exploratory U.S.-backed project to extract highly sought-after rare earth elements from industrial mining waste. The Phalaborwa Rare Earths Project has U.S. support through a $50 million equity investment by the government’s International Development Finance Corporation and is part of accelerated U.S. efforts to reduce reliance on economic rival China for the minerals crucial for making electronic devices, robotics, defense systems, electric vehicles and other high-tech products. Countries have identified dozens of minerals, including copper, cobalt, lithium and nickel, as critical because…
Argentina’s congress has approved a bill promoted by the libertarian president, Javier Milei, that authorises mining in ecologically sensitive areas of glaciers and permafrost, outraging environmentalists. The amendment to the “glacier law”, which was already approved by the senate in February, would make it easier to mine for metals such as copper, lithium and silver in frozen parts of the Andes mountains. The chamber of deputies, Argentina’s lower house of congress, approved the amendment with 137 votes in favour, 111 against and three abstentions after nearly 12 hours of debate. Environmentalists say the legislative changes will weaken protections for crucial…