Deep Sea Mining, De-Globalisation of Energy Supply Chains
Negative electricity prices, UK's SAF mandate, Portugal's renewable target, Hydrogen from aluminium and seawater, Drones for food delivery
In this newsletter
Deepsea Exploration of Minerals
News from Governments
Increasing De-globalisation in the Energy Supply Chain
Top stories
Deepsea Exploration of Minerals
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) has issued 31 licenses to 22 different countries/companies for exploration of minerals undersea. The licenses allow for searching for minerals, determining their economic potential, and carrying out environmental and technical studies. Mining is not yet permitted, though many companies dig up rock samples for studies. A draft mining code was first released in 2015, and last updated in February 2024. It is still being hotly debated, and another version is expected in 2025.
Extraction of minerals from the seabed is being opposed by several countries, companies and environmental groups. Besides diminishing aquatic life in the area of extraction, mining will affect surrounding areas due to noise from mining activity, and even the upper zones of the ocean due to release of metal-containing fine particles from the wastewater discharged to concentrate ore slurry. The areas of interest are so inaccessible that nearly 90% of the biological life thriving in them is yet to be discovered and characterised.
There are 5 major areas where explorations are ongoing - the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) in the Pacific Ocean (west of the USA), the Indian Ocean, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and the Northwest Pacific Ocean.
Three kinds of mineral resources are of interest, each found in a different type of terrain in the seabed
Polymetallic nodules - contain mainly Manganese, Iron, silicates and hydroxides, and trace amounts of Nickel, Copper, Cobalt. They’re potato-sized lumps, visible on flat areas of the ocean floor, partially or fully buried. The largest concentration of these has been found in the the CCZ, a large relatively-flat area of the seabed between Hawaii and Mexico. This is the region of greatest economic interest for deep sea mining. Recently, researchers have found that these nodules are also producing oxygen (likely by splitting water) - this is unusual as oxygen is not found at such great depths where sunlight does not penetrate and no photosynthesis occurs.
Polymetallic sulphides - have large deposits of Copper, Zinc, Iron, Lead, Silver, Gold. These are located in hydrothermal vents that have very high temperatures and immense diversity of biological species. Newer research indicates hydrothermal vents may be associated with the origin of earliest forms of life.
Cobalt-rich Ferromanganese Crusts - are present at shallow depths, ranging from less than 400 metres to over 5000 metres. They’re found in ‘sea mountains’ that have been created due to undersea volcanic activity. These have a high percentage of Cobalt (2%) and also contain Platinum and trace amounts of Nickel and Manganese.
Some countries are working on their own guidelines for exploration of the seabed owned by them (typically limited to a few nautical miles off the coast). Norway is holding a public consultation and may award exploitation licenses in the first half of 2025.
Here’s a video overview of interest in deep-sea mineral resources, from Vox.
ET Energy | ISA Annual Report, June 2024 (PDF)
News from governments
The UK has introduced a mandate for use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel, effective from January 1 2025.
The SAF mandate will start in 2025 at 2% of total UK jet fuel demand, increase on a linear basis to 10% in 2030 and then to 22% in 2040. From 2040, the obligation will remain at 22% until there is greater certainty regarding SAF supply
A concern in making SAF is the use of bio-based feedstocks, which use significant land and water resources. These are used in the hydro-processed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) process. The UK is not limiting the use of SAF made using the HEFA process for the first 2 years of the mandate.
Further, from 2028, companies will be required to meet 3.5% of jet fuel demand from ‘power-to-liquid’ (hydrogen-based synthetic fuels). A ‘revenue-certainty mechanism’ is also being introduced to aid producers of SAF. GOV.UK
India will allow private sector participation for the research & development of small modular reactors, as per the latest national budget. Other climate-related developments include - initiatives to transition 1 crore farmers to ‘natural farming’, support for water and waste management projects in 100 large cities, assistance to states for irrigation and disaster response schemes. An outlay of INR 10,000 crore for grid-connected solar power, and INR 2228 crore for nuclear power projects is planned for 2024-25. ET Energy | Key Features of Budget 2024-25 (PDF)
The UK is setting up a public-owned clean energy company, named Great British Energy, to “own, manage and operate” clean power projects in the country. The entity will be headquartered in Scotland, and be funded through a windfall tax on oil & gas companies. GOV.UK
In its latest draft energy plan, Portugal is targetting 93% electricity consumption from renewables by 2030, and a share of 29% renewable energy in transport. In 2023, 61% of Portugal’s electricity came from renewables. Reuters | Perez Lorca - Legal Briefing on the Portugese National Climate and Energy Plan (PDF)
The UK is funding development of nuclear micro-reactors, with 1-10MW capacity, for use in space flight, defence, and to power communities and industries in remote locations. GOV.UK | Rolls Royce - Micro-reactor
Germany has published a strategy for hydrogen import, focused on developing pipelines and other road, rail and ship infrastructure for hydrogen, ammonia and methanol. Clean Energy Wire | Press Release (in German) | Import Strategy (in German)
Increasing de-globalisation in the energy supply chain
USA - 25-50% tariffs on imports of battery parts, EVs, solar cells from China and other countries; tax incentives for 100% domestically produced components in EVs and renewable energy projects
European Union - anti-dumping tariffs on biodiesel, duty on electric vehicle imports from China
France - state aid for solar manufacturing
India - local content in solar, batteries and green hydrogen projects; new 5-10% customs duty on import of solar panel components like solar glass and interconnects
Taiwan - minimum 70% local content in offshore wind
Turkey - anti-dumping provisions on imports of solar modules from Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Croatia, Jordan, China
South Africa - 10% duty on solar panel and module imports
Top Stories
Australia, France, California (USA) and Switzerland have now witnessed negative wholesale electricity prices for generation from renewables in 2023 and 2024. In Switzerland, prices fell to $ -436/ MWh on July 14. ET Energy
Norway-based, Aviant, is now delivering food via drones at select locations in Norway and Sweden. MIT News
Afghanistan is developing a new copper mine, said to carry the 2nd-highest global deposits of copper, in partnership with China Metallurgical Group Corporation. ET Energy
Global average temperatures set a new record of 17.16℃ on July 22, 2024 - this is an average of surface air temperatures across the entire planet. Here’s a look at previous records since 1975, showing the top 10 hottest days have all been in the last 10 years, and the latest record is already ~2 degrees above the highest temperature in 1975.
Graph showing highest global average (surface air) temperatures from the last 50 years. Src: Copernicus Climate Service, July 2024 MIT researchers have found a way to generate hydrogen using recycled aluminium from soda cans, with filtered seawater. Pellets of pure aluminium, from which surface oxides have been cleaned, split the water, causing hydrogen to bubble up. Using a gallium-indium alloy helps scrub off the oxides from the aluminium surface, and the alloy can be recovered and reused. The research may help develop a ‘continuous reactor’ for propulsion of small marine vessels - rather than carrying hydrogen onboard as fuel, aluminium could be used to generate hydrogen, as needed, at sea. MIT News
Trees not only remove CO2 from the atmosphere by photosynthesis, but microbes living in their bark may also be utilising methane, helping control atmospheric methane levels as well. The Guardian
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