ABSTRACT
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) did not envisage that the hydrothermal mineral deposits in the deep ocean might be a potential resource as they had not been discovered at that time. These deposits are the sulfides of metals that have been leached out of the young volcanic rocks of the midocean ridges and other volcanic areas by seawater that has penetrated many kilometres into the crust. The water is heated and returns by convection to the surface where it forms jets and plumes sometimes as hot as 300°C. The rapid chilling by the surrounding seawater precipitates out the sulfides as black particles, hence their name black smokers, which then accumulate as chimneys or mounds.
In the youthful ocean of the Red Sea, hydrothermal sulfides have accumulated as brines and sediments in the axial rift. A number of isolated basins along the spreading center are believed to contain economically viable concentrations of zinc, copper, and silver, with gold and cobalt as important subsidiary metals. In total, the deposits are estimated to contain nearly 100 million tons of dry salt-free sulfides. Ownership is shared between the neighboring states, which have combined to form the Red Sea Consortium to consider their exploitation and the environmental consequences.
India, China, Germany, and South Korea are engaged in detailed exploration for SMS in the Indian Ocean. Japan and others also interested.
