Tonga's risky seabed mining ventures: Yoichiro Sato comments on the problems confronting Tonga in seeking to exploit its EEZ resources.

• Jurisdiction: New Zealand
• Date: 01 March 2014
• Author: Sato, Yoichiro

For Pacific Islands nations, seabed mineral resources offer growing potential for boosting their economic development. The vast exclusive economic zones (EEZs) they hold are host to various mineral resources that are as yet untapped. Furthermore, the seabed of international waters in the Pacific has been opened to international mining consortia under the management of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) of the UN Law of the Sea Commission. While most participants are from the developed countries with a large capital endowment and advanced technology, Pacific countries like Nauru and Tonga have partnered with an international investor to join mining in the international seabed.

In EEZ mining, the national government holds authority both in licensing prospecting the area for mining resources and overseeing their extraction. In addition to setting the price of the license fees, it has another important reponsibility in ensuring that subsequent operations are environmentally sound.

Despite Tonga's 'democratic transition' after the Nukualofa riot of 2006, the royal family continues to dominate its politics. The absence of transparent law governing the deep-sea mining and the Tongan government's decision to sign international joint exploration and production agreements have set the stage for the partial privatisation of national resources without a fair return to the general government coffer. The Tongan government's involvement in seabed mining in international waters exposes it to the risk of losses and liabilities that will have to be shouldered by the taxpayers. For the poorly developed governance competency of Tonga, seabed mining simultaneously offers too much economic lure and demands too much supervisory responsibility.

Hydrothermal vents

Deep water within the Tongan EEZ is host to numerous hydrothermal vents known as 'black smokers' on the seabed, which produce polymetallic sulphide deposits containing various metals, such as copper, lead, zinc and gold. By March 2008, the Tongan government had granted a 15-year exploration license to Nautilus Minerals, a Canada-based firm active in deep-sea mining throughout the Pacific, for an 80-square- kilometre area off Nuku'alofa known as the Lau Basin. Nautilus organised its first exploration voyage in September 2008. The Tongan government also awarded the Korean government a similar exploration license in March 2008, and three exploration voyages were carried out in the following month. The...