Prime Minister & Minister for Seabed Minerals, Hon. Mark Brown recently presented on the Cook Islands efforts to sustainably develop its seabed minerals (SBM) sector at a conference called the SAFE Summit (Summit) in Washington D.C.

The Summit brought together top United States (US) government officials, business leaders, and other domestic and international stakeholders – including from Australia, Japan and Canada.

The Summit’s objectives were to help progress the US government’s substantial push towards a cleaner energy future, including the mass conversion to electric vehicles. The US government’s commitment to this initiative can be measured in part through the $391 billion allocated for energy and climate change under their Inflation Reduction Act 2022.

Reflecting the importance of the Summit was the high calibre of the speakers which included: Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Innovation John Podesta; Special Presidential Coordinator for Global Infrastructure and Energy Security Amos Hochstein, Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Senator Joe Manchin, Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Jose Fernandez, and Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd.

Over 600 people attended the Summit, including representatives from two of the Cook Islands exploration licence holders, CIC and Moana Minerals.

Numerous challenges to achieving a cleaner energy future were discussed during the Summit, including US access to secure supplies of the raw materials needed, such as cobalt. A common theme was that alternative sources of environmentally and socially acceptable materials were critically needed.

PM Brown gave a Ted-style talk, informing attendees about the Cook Islands seabed minerals and the government’s efforts to sustainably develop its SBM sector. PM Brown touched on the potential contribution that seabed minerals could have in the global shift towards a low carbon economy and spoke about key issues such as ensuring environmental protection and innovative metals processing.

“I was pleased to share on the Cook Islands seabed minerals journey, including our Exploration programme currently underway,” said PM Brown. “I see us leading the way in terms of responsible and sustainable development. Putting our people first, putting our Marae Moana first – before we even consider making any decisions on future seabed harvesting.”

Meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman

PM Brown was supported by SBM Commissioner Alex Herman, Technical Director John Parianos and Acting High Commissioner Piakura Passfield during his visit.

The Cook Islands delegation also had a series of meetings with relevant government officials and organisations. The discussions included building on the Cook Islands SBM research efforts to date, by supporting independent marine environmental research to better understand the baseline environmental conditions in the Cook Islands.

“While the Cook Islands government engagement with the United States on seabed minerals is still in its infancy, we warmly welcome their possible future collaboration, alongside other countries with a common vision and goals,” said PM Brown.

Meeting with Lead National Security Council Staffer for the Indo Pacific Region Dr Kurt Campbell (second from right)

Queries may be directed to Dede Mingi: [email protected]

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PM Brown presents on Cook Islands seabed minerals in Washington DC