The Cook Islands has extended the lifespan of its national seabed minerals exploration programme, delaying any verdict on commercial nodule extraction until at least 2032. The decision reflects both unfinished scientific work by exploration licence holders and an ongoing push from local environmental groups for far deeper study of the nation’s vast deep-sea ecosystem.
The Seabed Minerals Authority, the regulator responsible for overseeing exploration and licensing, confirmed that the companies active in Cook Islands waters have not yet completed the research programmes they committed to when licences were first issued in early 2022. Those licences expire in February 2027. Each company will now need to seek a five-year renewal if they intend to continue their work. An independent licensing panel will assess those renewal submissions under the existing regulatory framework.
The three exploration groups are Cook Islands Cobalt Limited, Moana Minerals Limited through Ocean Minerals LLC, and CIIC Seabed Resources Limited. Their work plans involve baseline environmental studies, geological sampling, and detailed assessments on whether polymetallic nodule extraction could be carried out safely and economically.
Local conservation advocates argue that a five-year extension still falls short of what is required. Te Ipukarea Society has reiterated that deep-sea ecosystems remain poorly understood and that meaningful biodiversity research requires a much longer timeframe. The organisation has pointed out that much of the Cook Islands population remains unfamiliar with both the environmental risks and the shifting global demand outlook for metals such as cobalt and nickel. The group believes the community should have far more time and information before any government can make an informed decision on commercial mining.
The call for more research has gained new momentum following two recent scientific cruises. A United States mission aboard the EV Nautilus, conducted with direct support from the Seabed Minerals Authority, offered high-resolution imagery and sampling that revealed a diverse deep-sea ecosystem. Officials have acknowledged that while such expeditions are valuable, they represent only an initial look at a region that spans millions of square kilometres.
A separate Chinese scientific voyage, carried out by the Da Yang Hao between Fiji and the Cook Islands, added another layer of oceanographic data intended to expand national knowledge of the deep seabed.
Polymetallic nodules remain the central resource of interest in the Cook Islands exploration zone. They host cobalt, nickel, copper and manganese in concentrations attractive to battery metal supply chains. Government estimates place the nodule inventory at about 6.7 billion tonnes on a wet basis. However, the economic potential of the resource cannot be evaluated without a clearer picture of biodiversity, sediment behaviour, ecosystem services, and long-term environmental impacts.
Officials within the Seabed Minerals Authority have acknowledged that the country does not yet possess enough scientific certainty to choose a path forward. The extension of the exploration phase reflects this reality. The next several years will test not only the quality of environmental research but also the capacity of the Cook Islands to chart a course for one of the most consequential resource decisions in its history.
