Seabed Mining Plan Off New Zealand Coast Withdrawn

A mining company that spent over a decade trying to dig up the seabed off New Zealand's Taranaki coast has finally given up, marking a major win for ocean protection and the communities who refused to back down.

Trans-Tasman Resources withdrew its application to mine a 66-square-kilometer area of ocean floor on Thursday, just days after a government panel signaled it would reject the proposal. The panel found the project posed serious risks to endangered Māui dolphins, little blue penguins, and fairy prions that cannot be fixed with safety conditions.

The Australian-owned company first applied for permission in 2013, hoping to extract vanadium and titanium from the seabed. Vanadium is valuable for making batteries, and the company claimed the operation could bring $1 billion annually to New Zealand's economy.

But indigenous iwi groups and environmental organizations fought back through every legal channel available. The Environmental Protection Agency rejected the first application in 2014, though a different committee approved it in 2017.

That approval didn't last long. Iwi and conservation groups took the case to the High Court, which sided with ocean protectors and threw out the permits. The company appealed twice more, reaching New Zealand's Supreme Court, but lost both times.

The Supreme Court made it clear that protecting marine life comes first. Judges said there was too much uncertainty about how mining would affect vulnerable species, and the company couldn't guarantee the environment would stay safe from pollution.

Trans-Tasman Resources tried one more time in 2024, this time through a new fast-track approval process designed to speed up major projects. That attempt just ended in withdrawal.

The Ripple Effect

This victory belongs to years of persistent advocacy, especially from Ngāti Ruanui iwi and their former leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer, who is now a Member of Parliament. Their determination sent a message that communities can successfully defend their oceans against industrial threats.

The decision also sets an important precedent. Even fast-track processes designed to approve projects quickly must still respect environmental protections when endangered species are at stake.

New Zealand's waters now have breathing room, and the rare Māui dolphins swimming off Taranaki will keep their habitat undisturbed.

After 13 years of saying no in courtrooms and on beaches, ocean defenders can finally celebrate a permanent win.