Nautilus Minerals Moves Into New Phase of Seafloor Mining Exploration In PNG

According to a press release today, Nautilus Minerals has completed the first phase of its offshore mining exploration program in Papua New Guinea. Phase One was completed on Tuesday May 6, 2008 and involved a 28-day bathymetric mapping program (pre- and post-mapping seafloor bathymetry images above) within the territorial waters of PNG that was designed to define targets for subsequent sampling and eventual mining and extraction.

Nautilus Minerals is operating in a joint venture to mine seafloor massive sulfide deposits in PNG and beyond with Canadian mining company, Teck Cominco Limited. Teck Cominco holds over 3,000,000 common shares of the Nautilus Minerals company for a total of US$52 million investment. As part of this deal, Teck Cominco agreed to conduct and manage the recently completed ship-based exploration in Papua New Guinea as well as in sites in Tonga and New Zealand.

Curiously, while the just-completed exploration is within the exclusive economic zone of PNG, the proposed mining sites (or "tenements" as they are called in the trade) are 100% owned by Nautilus. Now this is certainly not the first time PNG has allowed it's natural resources to be stripped and exploited. Timber, terrestrial minerals, and other resources have been extracted for decades. But PNG has made terrestrial lumber and mining operations pay, and pay dearly, for leasing the land and subsequent extraction rights. And traditional Melanesian resource owners, the local communities, have been compensated for this use.

But Nautilus "owns" their seafloor mining sites. And resource owners in coastal villages adjacent to the seafloor mining operation in Madang Province have apparently received absolutely nothing, diddly, squat, zip, zilch, nada, bupkis to have their traditionally owned seafloor stripped. Why this disparity between terrestrial and seafloor extraction practices? Because Nautilus' operations are invisible in 1,600 meters of water. Out of sight, out of mind.

The Nautilus Minerals saga is a long and winding tale of dollar signs trumping precautionary logic. I've written about it here, and Craig at Deep Sea News has spent considerable energy documenting it here and here. And sadly, the tale continues to relegate PNG's people, children, and future to be sidelined as the nation's resources are stripped and the profit collects in government pockets and Canadian mining bank accounts.