Under the impression of decreasing ore grades and increasing production costs in conventional mining, seafloor minerals came into focus. Having gained a basic understanding of geological settings, there is still a lack of tools to assess and plan future mining projects in the deep-sea. This paper contributes to a mining concept which is inspired by the high-tech farming industry: strip mining. Potential mining fields are identified using image filters in conjunction with hydroacoustic backscatter data and slope angles and are portioned into long, narrow strips. In the framework of the EU-funded Blue Mining project, these methods were applied to a part of the eastern German exploration area, located in the manganese nodule belt of the Clarion Clipperton Zone, Pacific Ocean. Both, the mapping technique and the mining concept presented in this paper can be used in early-stage feasibility studies to derive estimates on production key figures for seafloor manganese nodule mining.

Mine planning of land-based mineral deposits follows well-established methods. The deep sea is currently under exploration, but mine planning approaches are still lacking. A spatial planning tool to assess the techno-economic requirements and implications of manganese nodule mining on deep-sea deposits is proposed in this paper. The comprehensive approach has been validated using research findings of the Blue Mining project, which received funding from the European Commission. A part of the German exploration area E1, located in the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone, Pacific Ocean, serves as a case study area. The approach contributes to a responsible utilization of mineral resources in the deep sea, considering geological, economic and financial as well as technical and operational aspects. The approach may also be applicable for an early-stage assessment of other projects related to spatially distributed mineral resources, e.g., marine phosphate nodules. Furthermore, it could also be helpful for the investigation of the environmental impacts of seafloor manganese nodule mining.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract