Increased Allocations for Mapping of Seabed Minerals

The Norwegian Government proposes in the revised National Budget for 2020 to increase funding for mapping of seabed minerals and knowledge building from 70- to 139 mill. NOK.

Accumulating knowledge to increase the understanding of the resource potential on the Norwegian continental shelf is crucial to safeguarding Norwegian national interests and ensuring good resource management.

The Norwegian Government has decided to initiate an impact assessment and resource assessment for mineral activities on the Norwegian continental shelf.

As part of this, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate will prepare a resource assessment of the mineral deposits found on the Norwegian continental shelf. In unopened areas, only the state can carry out mapping.

As a resource owner, it is in the state's interest to have knowledge of the resource base on the Norwegian continental shelf. The knowledge that is available is crucial both for establishing commercial mineral activities on the seabed and for good management of resources, says Tina Bru, Norwegian Minister of Petroleum and Energy.

The areas that are prospective for sulphide deposits and, or, manganese crusts include large marine areas.

There is uncertainty about where the most interesting resources exist, what they consist of and how large they are. Thus, mapping is important to obtain sufficient knowledge as a basis for a resource assessment and to identify the most interesting commercial occurrences.

As part of an impact assessment in connection with an opening process, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate is also working to increase their knowledge about exploration and recovery methods.

Knowledge of possible exploration and recovery technologies that may be relevant to the Norwegian continental shelf is also important for the opening process.

Our Cluster can Contribute

GCE Ocean Technology will contribute to develop this potential new market through our role as board member of the Norwegian Forum for Marine Minerals (NMM).

NMM is an association of industry and R&D actors who work together to develop knowledge and expertise, and a Norwegian industry aimed at sustainable and responsible exploration and extraction of marine mineral resources.

NMM's goals are to:

• Strengthen cooperation between industry, trade and research environments, authorities and other organisations.
• Become an industry organisation for all relevant actors in the field of marine minerals.
• Contribute to developing common Norwegian strategies for sustainable exploration and extraction of marine mineral resources.
• Be a national mouthpiece for the extraction of marine minerals.
• Strenghten the Norwegian environment’s international contact and influence in the field of marine minerals. This means, inter alia, contributing to the establishment of and participation in international networks of corresponding forums.

We encourage our cluster partner and members to consider a membership.