Moana Minerals Limited, a Wholly-owned Subsidiary of Ocean Minerals LLC, Announces Award of an Exploration License by the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, Feb. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Moana Minerals Limited (the "Company" or "Moana"), a Cook Islands registered company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of parent company Ocean Minerals LLC ("OML"), today announced the award of an Exploration License by the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority. Moana Minerals Ltd. is one of the first companies to hold an Exploration License in the Cook Islands.

"The growing demand for ethically sourced cobalt, nickel, and other critical raw materials is undeniable and is unlikely to be met by land based mine supply alone. Land based mining companies, battery manufacturers, and even some automakers are looking for new sources of battery metals and deep seabed minerals can be this supply source," said Hans Smit, OML's President and Chief Executive Officer. "As we work together with Cook Islanders and the Seabed Minerals Authority to conduct the environmental studies and technology development needed to responsibly recover these resources, Moana will position itself as a responsible industry leader," Smit added.

This Exploration License provides Moana with exclusive rights for a period of five years to explore for cobalt- and nickel-rich polymetallic nodules within an area measuring 23,630 square kilometers entirely within the boundaries of the Cook Islands Exclusive Economic Zone. During the exploration period, Moana will collect environmental baseline data from the deepsea ecosystem to form a basis for an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA), recover quantities of nodules for metallurgical processing studies, and collect additional geologic samples to increase the size and confidence of its resource estimate which, based on existing data, is estimated to be the largest undeveloped cobalt resource in the world. Moana will be in regular communications with the Cook Islands community and the Seabed Minerals Authority to share updates on its program, including data gathered in the course of exploration.

This award also triggers the closing of a definitive agreement entered into between Moana's parent company, Ocean Minerals LLC, and Transocean Limited (NYSE: RIG), under which Transocean will acquire a non-controlling minority equity interest in Ocean Minerals LLC.

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About Ocean Minerals LLC

Ocean Minerals LLC is a deepwater critical metals exploration and development company incorporated in the Cayman Islands. The company's subsidiary companies, including Moana Minerals Limited, have made a high-grade discovery of polymetallic nodules (cobalt, nickel, copper, manganese, and rare earth elements) and sedimentary muds (rare earth elements) containing critical and strategic metals. These discoveries are all entirely within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Cook Islands.

For additional information regarding Ocean Minerals LLC, please visit the company's website at: www.omlus.com 

About Moana Minerals Limited

Moana Minerals Limited is wholly-owned subsidiary of Ocean Minerals LLC, and is a deepwater critical metals exploration and development company incorporated in the Cook Islands with offices and operations based in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. The company has made a high-grade discovery of polymetallic nodules containing cobalt, nickel, copper, manganese, and rare earth elements entirely within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Cook Islands. This deposit, reported in accordance with NI 43-101 and JORC standards, reports an Inferred resource containing over 1 million tonnes of cobalt, 470,000 tonnes of nickel, 260,000 tonnes of copper, and 31 million tonnes of manganese. Additionally, independent metallurgical laboratory tests have indicated rare earth element volumes in excess of 600,000 tonnes (aggregate REE basket tonnage), also contained within the nodules.

Moana Minerals Limited holds an Exploration License for 23,630 square kilometers within the Cook Islands EEZ, where the company continues to conduct further exploration activities aimed at securing environmental approvals to perform commercial operations and increasing confidence levels and size of the reported mineral resource. In parallel, and in partnership with Transocean, the Company is advancing work to develop recovery systems to mine and process these high-quality seafloor polymetallic nodules on a commercial scale.

For additional information regarding Moana Minerals Limited, please visit the company's website at: www.moana.co.ck 

SOURCE Moana Minerals Limited