LESSONS LEARNED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF NODULE MINING TECHNOLOGY

Ten years after the first rush into the new field of ocean mining the transformation of the technology developed at that time into steps towards commercialization seems to have become a task for generations to come. To shed some light on the scenario of the initial stage of industrial involvement in deep-sea mining, some of the basic motives behind the first firms' entry into deep-sea mining are reviewed. Ocean Management, Inc. (OMI), one of the first pioneering joint ventures, is highlighted, and insight into some critical problems encountered during its project development and the way the problems were overcome is given.