About ORCeNG
OUR VISION
We create a future society where people and nature are in harmony through developing seafloor mineral resources.
©JAMSTEC
How will humans be living in the future, decades or centuries later?
One thing is certain: human society attempt to develop continuously. The key to development is the stable supply of resources, the source of all the "things" that humans produce. However, limited resources will be depleted in the near future and further unreasonable development will destroy the environment that we live in.
We are now expected to obtain resources with low environmental stress and live in harmony with the earth at the same time as our society develops.
How can we achieve this?
The clue is mineral resources on the seafloorーthe last frontier of the Earth.
OUR MISSION
We aspire to understand the nature of seafloor mineral resources and increase their practical value.
©JAMSTEC
Seafloor mineral resources, such as rare earth elements-rich mud and ferromanganese nodules, contain high concentrations of industrially critical metals.
They are considered to be inexhaustible. In addition, the environmental impact associated with their development is small. However, when practically utilizing these resources, we are faced with the difficult task of exploring and developing them on the vast ocean at the depths of >5,000 meters.
What is necessary to overcome this challenge is to understand the true nature of seafloor mineral resources. More specifically, when, where, and why they were created.
Knowing the origins of the resources will enable us to maximize the efficiency of the entire process of discovering, mining, and refining useful resources. We ORCeNG believe that such seafloor mineral resources, with their high practical value in economic and technological terms, will be a major force for the further development of society in the future.
OUR ACTION
We uncover valuable seafloor mineral resources through cutting-edge scientific technology.
Seafloor mineral resources are produced by the circulation of various materials and the concentration of useful elements in the "Earth System," a complex system consisting of atmosphere, oceanosphere, geosphere, biosphere and so on.
Therefore, to understand the nature of these resources, it is essential to take an integrated approach from various research fields related to earth science, such as geo-environmental studies, oceanography, geology, mineralogy, petrology, biology, geochemistry, geochronology, and resource engineering.
We ORCeNG employ a wide range of skills and experiences, as well as state-of-the-art technology, and are also fueled with the passion to create a prosperous society.