Deep Sea Rare Minerals seeks US seabed licences

[Ben Graham]

Deep Sea Rare Minerals (DSRM), the parent company of autonomous underwater vehicle operator Deep Sea Vision, has applied for subsea mineral exploration licences with the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The move makes DSRM only the second company, after The Metals Company (Nasdaq: TMC), to publicly announce such an application since US President Donald Trump’s executive order in April promoting the deep-sea mining industry.

The filing coincides with DSRM’s sponsorship of the 2025 Underwater Minerals Conference, running November 9–14 in Honolulu. 

TMC submits application for deep sea mining under US law

NOAA, which regulates mineral exploration and recovery by qualified US entities in international waters, recently pledged to speed up its review process, saying it would “provide the necessary resources for license and permit reviews to ensure that those reviews go forward without undue delays.”

Tony Romeo, chief executive of DSRM and a former US Air Force intelligence officer, said the company is ready to help strengthen national mineral supply chains.

“As an American-based company, we are ideally positioned to leverage our deep-water equipment, personnel, and operational expertise,” Romeo said. “We look forward to working with NOAA and other federal agencies throughout this application process to become a dependable supplier of US-sourced critical minerals.”

Spiking interest

DSRM’s application comes barely a day after a joint announcement by Japan and the US outlining plans to develop deep-sea mining near Japan’s Minamitorishima Island. The partnership aims to secure rare earth materials critical to advanced technologies and defence while reducing dependence on China, which controls nearly the entire global supply chain.

DSRM’s move also comes amid growing environmental scrutiny. A study published this week warned that waste from deep-sea mining could disrupt ecosystems in the ocean’s “twilight zone,” a vital midwater layer supporting much of the marine food web.