Cook Islands recommends Am Samoa as a center for seabed mineral mining operations

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Cook Islands Consortium (CIC) for electric vehicle (EV) battery seabed mineral exploration and mining has recommended American Samoa as an ideal center for ship maintenance and repair, logistics, broadband technology, ore processing and international shipping supply chain operations.

Preliminary studies indicate that 180 millions tons of battery minerals such as cobalt and manganese are located on the Cook Islands’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) seabed floor. The CI Seabed Authority has taken many positive steps, including environmental studies,  to mine EV battery minerals as a generator of new revenue and economic development.

According to John Wasko, who heads up a local group of private sector industry professionals, seabed mining operations could drive American Samoa's economy for the next 50 years just as tuna processing has for the past 70 years.

According to Wasko, American Samoa is a logical choice for ship operations. Deep water Pago Pago harbor can safely and efficiently accommodate all sizes of exploration and mining ships as well as ore transport barges. The Cook Islands Local Engagement, Training and Business Development Plan, including references to American Samoa,  can be found at https://www.sbma.gov.ck/cic-limited.

Although the American Samoa Government has not pursued seabed mining as a new economic development opportunity, United States Geological Survey exploration studies indicate that rare earth seabed minerals are also abundant in the American Samoa Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)