International Seabed Authority

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is an autonomous intergovernmental organization established under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 1994 Agreement on Implementation of Part XI. It became operational in 1994 and is headquartered in Kingston, Jamaica.

The ISA's core mandate is to organize, regulate, and control all mineral-related activities in "the Area" — the seabed, ocean floor, and subsoil lying beyond the limits of national jurisdiction, which UNCLOS designates as the "common heritage of mankind." This covers roughly half of the planet's surface. Activities of interest include exploration and potential exploitation of polymetallic nodules, polymetallic sulphides, and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts, which contain nickel, copper, cobalt, manganese, and rare earth elements relevant to the energy transition.

Membership comprises all states parties to UNCLOS. The ISA has three principal organs:

• The Assembly, the plenary policy-making body of all members.
• The Council, a 36-member executive organ that approves contracts and develops regulations.
• The Secretariat, headed by a Secretary-General elected for four-year terms.

A specialized Legal and Technical Commission advises the Council, and an Enterprise is foreseen to conduct activities directly on behalf of humankind, though it remains dormant.

The ISA has issued exploration contracts to state-sponsored entities and private contractors (sponsored by states such as Nauru, Tonga, China, Russia, and several European countries). It has not yet adopted a final Mining Code for commercial exploitation. In June 2021, Nauru triggered the so-called "two-year rule" under the 1994 Agreement, pressuring the Council to finalize exploitation regulations. Negotiations have continued past that deadline amid calls from states including France, Germany, Chile, and Palau for a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep-sea mining, citing environmental risks to poorly understood abyssal ecosystems.