"The Metals Company, a prominent seabed-mining company, applauded the change and filed a new application more than doubling the area it hopes to mine."

"On Wednesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration finalized a new rule making it easier for companies to apply for the right to mine the deep ocean floor.

The next day, the Metals Company, a seabed mining start-up, submitted a new application that more than doubled the area it was seeking to exploit. The new rule could significantly shorten the company’s path to mining the seafloor, a change it celebrated.

“Nearly 50 years after this ​industry took ​shape, it’s ready ​to move forward,” a company spokesman wrote in an email. The new NOAA rules streamline commercial and exploratory applications to mine the seabed into a single process, cutting in half the number of required environmental assessments and public-comment periods."

Sachi Kitajima Mulkey reports for the New York Times January 22, 2026. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Trump Administration Speeding Deep-Sea Mining Permits In International Waters" (The Hill) [3]