Scientists in Japan have made a discovery set to keep their economy booming for the next decade.
A survey by The Nippon Foundation and the University of Tokyo discovered a field of dense manganese nodules on the seabed of Minami-Tori-shima island, 1,200 miles from the bustling capital of Tokyo.
The nodules, found 5,700 meters below sea level, contained millions of metric tons of cobalt and nickel – the key crucial components needed in the creation of electric vehicle (EV) batteries as well as jet engines, and gas turbines.
According to Nikkei Asia, the nodules are thought to have formed over millions of years as metals transported in the ocean attached to fish bones and subsequently stuck to the seabed.
610,000 metric tons of cobalt and 740,000 metric tons of nickel are thought to have been discovered, which, according to current cost per ton of each nodule, amounts to a total of $26,290,780,000 (£20,803,631,000).
Like anything, markets can fluctuate, and the minerals may become worth more or less than this staggering number, and the demand in the EV and energy storage industries may also affect pricing.
Between the months of April and May this year, 100 seabed sites were surveyed by a team using remotely operated underwater vehicles, with 230 million tons of the rare minerals being discovered.
As well as finding the rare minerals, deposits are also thought to contain copper, another extremely valuable element.
Multiple nodules initially discovered in a 2016 survey had formed around teeth belonging to a prehistoric shark, the Megalodon, said experts.
Excavators are now planning to lift ‘three million tons annually’ from the deposits according to Yasuhiro Kato, a professor specialising in resource geology at the University of Tokyo, following the most recent survey.
Professor Kato highlighted that the procedure would allow for further discovery with ‘minimal impact on the marine environment’.
The team plan to utilise overseas mining vessels to lift several thousand tons of nodules everyday beginning in 2025.
According to Interesting Engineering, in using the cobalt and nickel found in the ocean, Japan will be able to decrease its dependency on other countries and satisfy their internal demand for EV batteries.
A press release from the University of Tokyo stated: “Ultimately, we expect that our research outcomes will help boost Japan’s growth by establishing a domestic supply chain stretching from ‘resource-mining’ to ‘manufacturing’, and make Japan a science-technology, and ocean-oriented nation in a true sense of word.”
Related: Starbucks closes 50 stores in Malaysia as Gaza boycotts bite