On 4 November 2022, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and the Interoceanmetal Joint Organization (IOM) signed a 5-year extension agreement for the contract for exploration for polymetallic nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean. This is the second 5-year extension that has been granted to IOM.
Category: Press Release
ISA Council opens Part III of its 27th session
The Council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) opened the meetings of Part III of its 27th session on Monday, 31 October 2022. The Council will meet in person for ten days until 11 November 2022. The main item on the agenda of the Council is the draft regulations on the exploitation of mineral resources in the Area (ISBA/25/C/WP.1) prepared by the Legal and Technical Commission and submitted to the Council in March 2019.
The 2022 Women in the Law of the Sea Conference successfully closes with a renewed commitment to empowering women in marine sciences and ocean affairs
On 28 September 2022, the first-ever Women in the Law of the Sea Conference ended after three days of thought-provoking presentations and discussions on the empowerment of women in the law of the sea, marine sciences and ocean affairs.
The 2022 Women in the Law of the Sea Conference opens in New York to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the adoption of UNCLOS
On 26 September 2022, the Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), H.E. Mr. Michael W. Lodge, opened the first ever Women in the Law of the Sea Conference in New York in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The conference is organized by ISA in partnership with the Permanent Mission of Singapore to the United Nations and the Permanent Mission of Malta to ISA and the United Nations. It will take place from 26 to 28 September 2022 in a hybrid format, gathering over 330 registered participants joining either from the Permanent Mission of Singapore, the United Nations headquarters in New York or remotely.
ISA Legal and Technical Commission concludes its review of the environmental impact statement submitted by NORI for the testing of a polymetallic nodule collector under its contract for exploration in the Area
The Legal and Technical Commission (LTC) of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has concluded its review of an environmental impact statement (EIS) submitted to the Secretary-General of ISA by Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. (NORI) regarding its plans to carry out testing of a polymetallic nodule collector and mining components in its NORI-D contract area in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Central Pacific Ocean.
ISA and DOALOS successfully host regional workshops in support of capacity-building in ocean governance for the Wider Caribbean Region and the scoping of the third World Ocean Assessment report
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) and the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS) of the Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations successfully hosted two successive workshops at the headquarters of ISA in Kingston, Jamaica, between 5 and 14 September 2022.
ISA Secretary-General addresses the Challenger Society Conference 2022 organized to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the HMS Challenger expedition
On 6 September 2022, the Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), H.E. Mr. Michael W. Lodge, delivered a keynote address for the opening of the “Challenger 150” Conference organized by the UK Natural History Museum together with Imperial College and the Challenger Society for Marine Science.
ISA launches pioneering new report on the status of women scientists from LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS in deep-sea research
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) launched a pioneering report, “Empowering Women from LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS in Deep-Sea Research,” on 30 June at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal. The report provides detailed information resulting from the first ever gender mapping undertaken in the field of deep-sea research and related disciplines. The report also identifies the critical barriers faced by women scientists from least developed countries (LDCs), landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) and small island developing States (SIDS) to participate in deep-sea research and related fields and access leadership positions.
ISA Assembly concludes in-person meetings under the 27th session
The 27th session of the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) closed on 4 August 2022 after three days of in-person meetings held in Kingston, Jamaica. Some delegations attended the session virtually. The meetings were presided by Mr. Olav Myklebust (Norway), who served as Acting President of the Assembly for the 27th session in the absence of the elected president, H.E. Mr. Satyendra Prasad (Fiji).
