EV batteries made from deepsea rocks could dramatically reduce carbon

A new peer-reviewed study commissioned by DeepGreen suggests that making electric vehicle (EV) batteries from deepsea polymetallic nodules could reduce the carbon footprint by 90% compared to conventionally mined land ores.

Polymetallic nodules from the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ) of the Pacific Ocean contain rich concentrations of four metals required for EVs in a single ore, including nickel, a crucial ingredient in EV batteries, which will increasingly be mined from beneath large forested carbon sinks in tropical areas like Indonesia and the Philippines.

As governments scramble to secure supplies of critical minerals to build renewable infrastructure, the paper published in the Journal of Cleaner Production analyses the planetary-scale and full lifecycle climate impacts of producing these metals.