Impossible Metals Inc., a U.S.-Saudi Business Council (USSBC) Chairman’s Circle member based in San Jose, California, develops technology for harvesting critical minerals from the seabed for use in batteries while maintaining the highest standards of sustainable production, social impact, and environmental protection. The USSBC recently spoke with Oliver Gunasekara, Founder and CEO of Impossible Metals, about the company’s groundbreaking deep-sea mining services and the impact the company’s innovations will have on the mining industry and the global shift to a green economy built on carbon-neutral energy.
What drove you to found Impossible Metals? Tell us more about its mission.
The whole idea for Impossible Metals came together during the pandemic. I’d just sold my previous company and was figuring out what was next. But the climate crisis kept weighing on me. It hit home hard here in the San Francisco Bay Area – the wildfires were brutal, and the sky turned this horrific orange. That’s when it clicked. If I was going to start something new, it had to be part of the answer, a way to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles and leave fossil fuels behind.
That’s Impossible Metals’ mission in a nutshell: responsible deep-sea mining. We need critical metals – nickel, copper, cobalt, and manganese – for the clean energy revolution, but traditional mining methods are too damaging. We’re focused on harvesting these critical minerals without damaging the environment. We’re talking advanced underwater robotics and AI, not blasting and bulldozers. It’s about innovation meeting responsibility. This isn’t just a business; it’s a chance to solve a global challenge.
Oliver Gunasekara, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Impossible Metals Inc.
How can deep-sea mining contribute to the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions?
Electric vehicles and renewable power, such as wind and solar, rely on critical metals for reducing fossil fuel dependence. Demand for these metals is projected to soar, and deep-sea mining offers a promising source to meet this growing need.
Oceans cover 71% of the Earth’s surface, and they contain the world’s largest reserve of these minerals in polymetallic nodules, which contain multiple minerals in a single form. Deep sea mining has a lower metal extraction cost than terrestrial mining due to higher ore grades, no need for new infrastructure, and the reuse of existing ships and ports.
Traditional land-based mining will be unable to meet the 500% increase by 2050 as it will require almost 400 new mines, which currently take an average of 18 years to go from deposit discovery to start-up. Additionally, land-based mining faces many environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impacts, including child labor, displacement or harm to local communities, deforestation, biodiversity loss, high CO2 emissions, and toxic waste tailings.
By diversifying the sources of critical metals through deep-sea mining, we can lessen dependence on land-based mines susceptible to geopolitical and environmental disruptions, ultimately securing a more reliable supply chain for clean energy technologies that fight climate change.
Why was your recent Eureka II deep sea test such an important milestone for Impossible Metals?
The Eureka II AUV (Autonomous Underwater Vehicle) performed fully autonomous deep-water operations at one-mile depth in the deep sea off Florida, making it the first-ever deep-water dive by an autonomous vehicle designed specifically for deep-sea mineral harvesting. Next year, we plan to test our production-sized system, Eureka III.
Explain how the Eureka II AUV avoids disrupting the marine ecosystem.
The Eureka II’s deep-sea harvesting technology is environmentally conscious and leverages selective harvesting with three novel features to minimize impact to the marine ecosystem:
- Hover Technology: We’ve developed patented buoyancy engine technology to ensure our AUV doesn’t touch down and hovers above the seabed; reducing sediment plumes that can harm marine life.
- Precise Manipulator Technology: Instead of dredging systems that indiscriminately vacuum multiple nodules simultaneously, our AUV uses specialized robotic manipulators that carefully pick up only individual nodules.
- AI-Powered Selective Harvesting: Our AUV incorporates advanced computer and artificial intelligence (AI) to avoid disturbing detected life on the nodules.
How does the Eureka II AUV differ from competitive deep-sea mining technology?
The Eureka architecture marks a significant departure from the limitations of conventional deep-sea mining methods, such as dredging tractors and riser pump technologies, which have remained largely unchanged for decades. In addition to cutting-edge robotics, computer vision, and AI, our innovative approach paves the way for a more sustainable and economically viable future of deep-sea mining with:
- No single points of failure with an untethered fleet of Eureka III AUVs, each with redundant components.
- Eliminating the need for ship-to-ship transfer of nodules, a process that has yet to be tested in the ocean.
- Scalable for large-scale operations and designed to handle millions of tons of minerals annually with a fleet of Eureka III AUVs.
- Significantly less cost as a dedicated mining vessel is not required.
Deep-sea mining with your technology sounds like a game-changer for clean energy and the economy. Given the vast potential of these mineral deposits, how quickly can Impossible Metals scale up production?
We’re aiming for a rapid but responsible rollout. By 2026, we expect to be in production with a small fleet of AUVs. By 2030, we project harvesting 6 million tons of nodules annually with a larger fleet of 128 robots. This could supply 10-15% of the world’s cobalt needs alone.
Our ultimate goal is for deep-sea mining to meet all global nickel and cobalt demand by 2030, eliminating the need for new land-based mines for these critical metals. Our approach also significantly lowers the environmental impact compared to traditional mining practices.
