DeepOcean Signs Agreement to Acquire Majority Stake in Adepth Minerals

DeepOcean Group has signed an agreement to invest in ADEPTH Minerals AS a company built for sustainable exploration and extraction of marine minerals. Through its investment, DeepOcean will acquire a majority stake in the company. 

“With this investment into a world-class team and an exciting new industry, DeepOcean is progressing its evolution into a world-leading ocean services provider. Alongside our continued core service segment of oil & gas and our increasing exposure to offshore renewables, deep sea minerals is an additional area where we see great potential for DeepOcean. By bringing our subsea and project execution experience to ADEPTH, we will together strive to support and enable the energy transition and sustainable use of ocean resources, by means of sourcing and extracting sought-after materials in an environmentally responsible manner”, says Øyvind Mikaelsen, CEO DeepOcean Group.  

Founded in Bergen, Norway in 2020 by an experienced team with complementary experience from geoscience and subsea operations, ADEPTH operates with the aim to deliver sustainable exploration and extraction of marine minerals through environmentally responsible marine operations using new, low carbon technology and by integrating big data and artificial intelligence for prospect analysis and risk assessment. ADEPTH has been an active participant in the impact assessment program for mineral extraction activities on the Norwegian continental shelf and aims to participate in the first Norwegian licensing round, which is expected from 2023. With DeepOcean’s majority ownership, ADEPTH Minerals will continue to operate as a standalone company and brand, benefiting from the full support of the group’s joint resources and vast subsea experience. Furthermore, the investment and DeepOcean’s expertise will enable ADEPTH to conduct a planned environmental research expedition in collaboration with the University of Bergen and Seabed Solutions (ADEPTH’s second largest shareholder). This collaboration builds on the common goal to create transformation through the development of a sound platform for exploration of deep-sea minerals. 

“With the Norwegian continental shelf possibly opening for deep sea mineral exploration in 2023, we are taking the opportunity to be part of what will be a new high potential industry for Norway, which provides one of few regulated and sustainable frameworks for mining minerals globally. Through the transaction with DeepOcean, ADEPTH gains a new partner with an industrial perspective that has long-standing project management experience within the subsea field and provides an operational platform to support our goal of becoming a leading deep sea mineral exploration company”, says Anette Broch Mathisen Tvedt, CEO and co-founder of ADEPTH.

The company has offices in Africa, Europe and the Americas.