Japan’s world-first deep sea mining expedition
Japan’s world-first deep sea mining expedition
Last week, a drilling-equipped research vessel, Chikyu, departed Japan’s shores to conduct an experimental extraction of rare earth rich mud from the ocean floor. The month-long deep sea mining expedition, led by the Japan Agency for Marin-Earth Science and Technology, will target the seabed near Minamitorishima Island and aims to continuously lift about 350t of material each day from 6km below the surface. The mission forms part of Japan’s move to reduce its reliance on Chinese supplies — Japan currently imports more than 70% of its rare earths from China, according to the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security — and commence domestically producing rare earth elements. The relationship between the Japan and China recently further deteriorated when China's commerce ministry-imposed export restriction on dual-use items, including rare earth elements, bound for Tokyo. Japan began exploring supply chain alternatives and investing heavily into non-China rare earth projects following a dispute with China in 2010 that affected exports. In 2013, Japanese researchers discovered deep-sea mud containing more than 5,000ppm total rare-earth elements and yttrium (REY) content was discovered in the western North Pacific Ocean within Japan’s exclusive economic zone. The diverse applications of REY include electric and hybrid vehicles, rechargeable batteries, wind turbines and many medical and military technologies. In 2018, after further investigation, about 16mt of rare earth elements were discovered in the area around Minamitorishima Island — enough to potentially meet global demand for centuries. The government-supported project has reportedly spent about $380m since its inception. Mining the resource was previously viewed as unviable. However, with geopolitical tensions and rare earth element prices at an all-time high, the project has recaptured global interest.
The Chikyu is expected to return to port on February 14. If successful, Japan plans to launch a full-scale demonstration by February 2027, to showcase its ability to maintain the daily extraction volume, with hopes to commercialise rare earths by 2030.
