Taiheiyo Metal announced that it will begin a demonstration project in October–December 2026, jointly with the University of Tokyo, to smelt rare metals from manganese nodules on the seabed off Minamitorishima. The company plans to recover metals including nickel and cobalt, using nodules retrieved from off Minamitorishima in fiscal 2027.
Taiheiyo Metal will conduct a demonstration test, in cooperation with the University of Tokyo, to smelt rare metals from manganese nodules collected from the seabed off Minamitorishima. The demonstration is scheduled to begin between October and December 2026 and is positioned as an initiative at a manufacturing base in the Tohoku region.
The feedstock will be manganese nodules from off Minamitorishima, with the objective of recovering metals such as nickel and cobalt in metallic form. The company will verify the process using equipment approaching commercial scale while assessing quality and costs. In fiscal 2027, it plans to use nodules retrieved from off Minamitorishima.
The demonstration is expected to continue through fiscal 2029. The effectiveness of the technology will be verified across the entire process, from feedstock transport and smelting to recycling of residual material. The nodules off Minamitorishima are also expected to be assessed for their rare-earth content.
The project has been selected for a Tokyo metropolitan government support program related to green transformation and will be advanced within the GX framework.