The Metals Company Inc. (TMC), an explorer of lower-impact battery metals from seafloor polymetallic nodules, announced the appointment of Brendan May to its Board of Directors as it seeks to harness the potential of deep-seafloor polymetallic nodules for the energy transition and wider global development.

As a former Chief Executive of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and European Chairman of the Rainforest Alliance, Mr. May has spent over two decades at the forefront of sustainability challenges in globally significant ecosystems. In 2010, he formed renowned global sustainability consultancy, Robertsbridge, whose counsel has been sought by leading companies and NGOs around the world.

Gerard Barron, CEO & Chairman of TMC said: “We are thrilled to have Brendan join the Board. His track record speaks for itself—Brendan does not shy away from taking on some of the most difficult sustainability challenges, building bridges between environmental NGOs and companies, and finding pragmatic paths toward better sustainability outcomes. In my experience, Brendan is unafraid to challenge the premises behind some of the environmental movement’s positions and, equally, challenge some of the positions taken by TMC’s management. We welcome and look forward to his contributions as a TMC Board Director.”

Mr. May commented: “As we grapple with the trade-offs required to decarbonize the global economy, a broad range of opinions exist on the harvesting of nodules. The issues are complicated, nuanced and polarizing but, since first meeting TMC’s management team, I have been consistently impressed by their commitment to transparency, willingness to engage their most hostile critics, and their significant investments in ocean science, which are helping to build a far more detailed and data-driven picture of the actual impacts of this industry. Already, I have found many opportunities for meaningful dialogue and discussion with thoughtful and pragmatic environmentalists, policy makers and scientists on this topic. While some advocacy groups continue to voice their concerns, I strongly urge people to engage with the actual data, which should always be the north star of any serious attempt to solve environmental challenges.”

The appointment of Mr. May further strengthens TMC’s Board as it seeks to transition into commercial production while global policymakers increasingly focus on the potential of deep-seafloor nodules to reduce the lifecycle planetary and human costs of land-based sources of the metals that underpin the energy transition and global development. In April, the Company announced that renowned Silicon Valley investor and former long-serving Board member of Tesla and current Board member of SpaceX, Steve Jurvetson, had joined its Board as Vice Chairman and Special Advisor to the CEO.