Environmental groups expect next week's meeting of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in Kingston, Jamaica, to rule out any immediate permission for mining to begin.
Mining companies say the ocean floor is potentially rich in metals like nickel and cobalt used in batteries for electric vehicles, so their extraction will support the global energy transition.
Any permitting delay will hurt the prospects of Canada's The Metals Company (TMC.O) (TMC), which has led efforts to exploit seabed minerals in the Pacific.
TMC says that while deep-sea mining will have some ecological impact, it would be less damaging than land-based extraction.
"The fact is no one has ever mined the sea floor in any major commercial capacity," said Victor Vescovo, an investor and deep-sea explorer who will attend the meeting.
Persons:
Sian Owen, Victor Vescovo, David Stanway, Melanie Burton, Clara Denina, Robert Birsel
Organizations:
Authority, Mining, The Metals Company, TMC, Conservation Coalition, ISA, Thomson
Locations:
SINGAPORE, Kingston , Jamaica, Pacific, Nauru, Germany, New Zealand, Switzerland, France, Norway, Melbourne, London