Assertion Supported AI assessment confidence: 95% certainty 4/5 debate potential 2/5

Grogan: Seafloor massive sulfides can have 10x higher copper grades than land mines

Renee Grogan · Mining the deep sea · Jul 27, 2023 · at 11:41

Renee Grogan contrasts the ore grade quality of seabed mineral deposits against degraded terrestrial deposits.

0:00 / 0:06exact quote · 6.8s

720p mp4 · rendered on demand · StarZero watermark

“Now in something like sea floor massive sulfides, The grade can be 10 times as high as a typical terrestrial copper mine.”

quote is from the automated transcript, cleaned for reading: filler sounds and stutters are removed, nothing is rephrased. names can be misheard (the analysis reads context, assessments check outside sources). how →

The claim, plainly

The mineral ore grade of seafloor massive sulfides can be 10 times higher than that of a typical terrestrial copper mine.

a quote alone can be ambiguous, so this restates it with the references and context of the conversation around it resolved. AI-written; the tape below the player is the source.

Assessment

The claim asserts that the mineral ore grade of seafloor massive sulfides (SMS) can be 10 times higher than that of a typical terrestrial copper mine. Geological survey literature and NI 43-101-compliant resource reports fully corroborate this. Porphyry copper deposits (accounting for ~60% of world production) typically yield average grades between 0.44% and 0.60% Cu. In comparison, indicated mineral resources at the Solwara 1 SMS deposit are documented at 6.8% to 7.2% Cu (a ~10x to 14x multiple), and global compilations of SMS deposits (e.g., Hannington et al., Petersen et al.) document median copper grades spanning 3% to over 10% Cu, with localized vent samples exceeding 15% Cu.

USGS global assessments show typical terrestrial porphyry copper deposit grades average between 0.44% and 0.6% Cu.
NI 43-101-compliant technical reports for the Solwara 1 SMS deposit evaluate indicated resources at 6.8% to 7.2% Cu, exceeding typical terrestrial mine grades by a factor of 10 to 14.
Global seafloor geological surveys (Hannington et al., Petersen et al.) document median bulk copper grades in SMS deposits ranging from 3% to >10% Cu, with localized zones exceeding 15% Cu.

Checked against

[1] usgs.gov [2] usgs.gov [3] geoexpro.com [4] quantum-wetstone.no [5] geoscienceworld.org [6] whoi.edu [7] researchgate.net [8] whoi.edu

seafloor massive sulfide average copper grade percent average copper grade terrestrial mine porphyry copper grade USGS seafloor massive sulfides copper grade USGS terrestrial copper grade comparison "Hannington" "seafloor massive sulfides" copper grade percent "Solwara 1" "copper" grade "NI 43-101" percent seafloor massive sulfide copper grade percentage Solwara 1 TAG deposit

assessed as of 2026-09-02

This assessment is an AI reading of a public statement, made against the cited references with the confidence shown. It can be wrong. The quote, the tape and the references are all on this page; if something is off, use report an error below. full disclaimer →

Mentioned

copper sea floor massive sulfides

⚑ Spot an error? Report it

More from Renee Grogan

Prediction Open · timeframe Dec 2028

Grogan: First commercial seabed mineral recovery will occur around 2028

“I think probably around twenty-twenty-eight is, is a fair guess.”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 48:12 Mining the deep sea

Assertion Partly supported

Grogan: Clarion-Clipperton Zone holds more nickel than all land resources combined

“There's an area called the Clarion-Cliberton Zone. It's between Mexico and Hawaii. It has a estimated resource of nickel that is larger than the entire global terrestrial nickel resource. So more than you have in the entire global terrestrial environment in th…”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 6:52 Mining the deep sea

Prediction Open · timeframe Jul 2033

Grogan: The ISA will pass deep sea exploitation regulations

“I think the ISA will pass its exploitation regulations. Whether they do that in July is, is a question that I can't answer. But I think there's, it will go ahead.”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 45:55 Mining the deep sea

Assertion Supported

Grogan: Nauru triggered a 2021 UN rule forcing deep-sea mining regulations

“So about two years ago, in July of 21 NARU, which is a sponsoring state of the metals company, which is a company, private company, or listed company that has exploration licenses, triggered what's known colloquially as the two-year rule. So it's a trigger und…”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 18:51 Mining the deep sea

Assertion Supported

Grogan: Cook Islands and New Zealand passed national deep-sea mining laws

“A couple of nations, the Cook Islands is one, New Zealand is another, have passed their own deep sea mining legislation. So they have legislation in place that allows for mining applications to be considered.”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 22:32 Mining the deep sea

Assertion Supported

Grogan: Selective seabed harvesting is proven in shallow water, unproven deep

“So that, that technology's in its infancy. It hasn't been tested in the deep ocean yet but it has been tested in shallow water and it does work.”

Renee Grogan Jul 27, 2023 ▶ 36:51 Mining the deep sea

Grogan: Seafloor massive sulfides can have 10x higher copper grades than land mines

More from Renee Grogan

Turn any episode into a week of clips.