The Metals Company (TMC), an explorer of the world’s largest undeveloped resource of critical metals for infrastructure, defense, energy, and future technologies, announced that its Chairman and CEO Gerard Barron testified before the US House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations at a hearing titled, “Exploring the Potential of Deep-Sea Mining to Expand American Mineral Production” on April 29, 2025.

Subcommittee Chairman Paul A. Gosar (R-Ariz) opened the session, saying, “I challenge my colleagues in this room to think about the widespread economic, energy, technology, and national security implications of deep-sea mining and about our duty to ensure the United States, with its world-best environmental, humanitarian and labor standards, leads the charge to harvest seafloor critical minerals.”

In his remarks as an expert witness for the House Majority at the Capitol Building hearing on Tuesday, TMC CEO and Chairman Gerard Barron emphasized that the United States must reclaim its leadership in deep-seabed mineral development to strengthen energy and supply chain security and reinforce national defense and manufacturing. He called attention to the strategic opportunity now before the country to responsibly unlock critical minerals from the deep seabed under existing US law: by 1989, America had developed a robust regulatory regime for deep-seabed mining in the high seas that was fully consistent with international law, commercially viable, and environmentally responsible.

“From the 1880s to 1970, America was a mining and processing powerhouse. Since then, domestic production sank, leaving America dangerously dependent on adversaries. We can change this without sacrificing American landscapes or communities. Four days sailing from San Diego lies the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, where polymetallic nodules sit 2.5 miles deep on the seafloor. Rich in nickel, cobalt, manganese, and copper, these nodules hold more of these minerals than all known land-based reserves combined.”

Mr. Barron continued: “With seabed minerals, America can end critical mineral dependence; reclaim leadership in offshore innovation; inspire generations of American engineers, scientists, and mariners; and create over 100,000 American jobs and generate over $300 billion in GDP.”

Mr. Barron also directed the Committee to his written submission “for a detailed rebuttal of common environmental myths used to confuse the public.” In his written testimony, publicly available at this link, Mr. Barron lays out in detail how “real-world data dispels every catastrophizing claim made by environmental activists.”

Another expert witness, Dr. Thomas Peacock of MIT—one of the world’s leading experts on deep-sea sediment plume dynamics—also asked the Committee to be wary of misinformation. “I think the question I would like to be asked is, are the latest scientific findings being used to drive decisions and discussions about deep-sea mining…I think, unfortunately, it’s not the case. For example, we hear the topic of, ‘will deep-sea mining disturb carbon sequestration in the deep ocean? I think that was established in about 2020 that this is not an issue.”

Dr. Peacock, who has studied sediment plumes for 10 years, went on to detail the misconceptions about plumes traveling thousands of miles and how that is “simply not the case.”

Just before the Oversight Subcommittee Hearing, TMC USA announced it had submitted the first-ever application for a commercial recovery permit for deep-sea polymetallic nodules under the US Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act of 1980 (DSHMRA), marking a major milestone in establishing a US-regulated supply of critical seabed minerals.

The United States has a long-established leadership role in regulating deep-sea mining. Through DSHMRA, Congress affirmed deep-seabed mining as a freedom of the high seas and empowered NOAA to regulate US exploration and commercial recovery. NOAA then developed a robust regulatory framework—adopting exploration regulations in 1981 and commercial recovery regulations in 1989—supported by extensive stakeholder consultations, environmental studies, and seven reports to Congress. NOAA’s science-based, flexible approach ensures rigorous environmental oversight while enabling the responsible development of emerging offshore industries.