The urgent need to begin elaboration of regulations for the exploitation of minerals from the deep seabed Area beyond the limits of national jurisdiction was a central theme at the International Seabed Authority’s twentieth anniversary session in Kingston (14-25 July 2014).

The historic twentieth session of the International Seabed Authority ended in Kingston this afternoon after its Assembly completed debate on the Secretary-General’s annual report and acted on five decisions including the Authority’s budget for the 2015-2016 biennium. The Assembly set 13-24 July 2015 as the date for the Authority’s next session.

The Assembly of the International Seabed Authority yesterday (24 July) concluded its consideration of the Secretary-General’s annual report in Kingston this morning hearing comments from twelve delegations and three observers on many aspects of its topics.

The Assembly of the International Seabed Authority resumed discussion on the report of the Secretary-General Nii Allotey Odunton (Ghana) in the afternoon (23 Julyu) which covered the work of the Authority during the period from July 2013 to June 2014.

The challenge of managing the increasing work load of the Authority as it moves towards elaborating exploitation regulations and the need for standardized data on the living resources of the seabed Area were highlighted by Secretary General, Nii Allotey Odunton (Ghana).

The Council of the International Seabed Authority, meeting in Kingston this morning, adopted a twelve-paragraph decision on the summary report of the Chair of the Legal and Technical Commission which was presented at its 17 July meeting.

The Assembly of the International Seabed Authority yesterday (22 July) held a day-long special session to commemorate the organisation’s twentieth anniversary with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, noting in a message, that the ongoing development by the Authority of a comprehensive set of rules governing seabed mining would go a long way towards helping States derive tangible benefits from the deep seabed Area.

Seven new applications for approval of plans of work for exploration in the international Seabed Area were approved this morning by the Council of the International Seabed Authority as it nears conclusion of its work of the twentieth session in Kingston.

The Council of the International Seabed Authority, at two meetings in Kingston on Friday 18 July, examined procedures for possible extension of exploration contracts and mechanisms for the formulation of regulations for exploitation in the Area, as it continued deliberations on the summary report of the Chair of the Legal and Technical Commission (LTC) on its February and July sessions.