US EditionNorway Postpones Deep-Sea Mining Activities for Four Years
Norway's minority Labour government postponed deep-sea mining to gain coalition support for the 2026 budget, amid environmental concerns and strategic mineral supply issues.
- To pass the 2026 budget on Friday, the minority Labour government suspended planned deep-sea mining, securing support from two remaining holdout parties early on Wednesday.
- The government had planned to start issuing exploration licences in 2025, but small coalition parties opposed those plans and withheld support despite Norway's parliament approving mining in 2024.
- An official 2023 assessment found 38 million tonnes of copper and 45 million tonnes of zinc on Norway's seabed, and the government argued prospecting is needed for the green transition and to reduce reliance on China.
- The World Wildlife Fund hailed the move as a major victory for nature, science and public pressure, while Greenpeace's Haldis Tjeldflaat Helle said `This must be the nail in the coffin for the deep sea mining industry in Norway`.
- Industry leaders said companies may shift to international projects while Norway's politics settle, noting licences in the Cook Islands with China and interest from The Metals Company in international waters.
38 Articles
38 Articles
At least until 2029 Norway does not want to grant licenses for drilling in the deep sea, where there is to be large quantities of copper, zinc and rare earths.
Norway does not want to issue any licences for the extraction of raw materials in the deep sea for the time being.
For the time being, no licences are granted for the controversial exploitation of raw materials in the deep sea in Norway. As the government announced in Oslo on Wednesday, an agreement was reached in the negotiations on the country's state budget, according to which there will be no tenders for deep-sea mining during the legislative period running until 2029. Environmentalists responded with relief.Background is that the Norwegian Parliament ha…
Daily Journal
Norway postpones deep-sea mining activities for four years
Norway on Wednesday postponed the first licences to permit deep-sea mining in its Arctic waters for four years, a delay environmentalists hope signals the "nail in the coffin" of the plans.
Norway, the first European country to open part of its waters to deep-sea mining, has postponed the issuance of the first licenses for another four years, under a political agreement reached on Wednesday.
The Labour Government has agreed not to call for tenders to open up part of Norwegian waters to these underwater mining activities, which were never published in Europe until 2029, in order to adopt their draft budget 2026.
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