Key points
- Impossible Metals and BGR announce the Eureka 3 pilot collector will not be ready for the early 2026 test as planned; the test is postponed to 2027 or 2028.
- Eureka 3 is a 6,000-meter-rated AUV about the size of a 20-foot shipping container, with 11 collection arms, a four-ton payload capacity, 11-ton dry weight and roughly 90-kilowatt battery capacity.
- The test plan calls for 20 collection cycles over four days in BGR’s Clarion Clipperton Zone contract area, comparing nodule removal rates of 50% and 90% to measure impact differences.
- DHI’s plume modeling, based on an average spill rate of 0.05 kg/second, found 95% of suspended sediment redeposits within 7 days, with 93% remaining inside the mined area.
