Governance of the South West Indian Ocean Seamounts - Science to Policy Meting before the 9Th COP of the Nairobi Convention, 09 -11 July 2018 - Durban

Seamounts are active or extinct volcanoes located on mid-oceanic rifts or intra-plate hot spots. Because of their magmatic origin, seamounts contain mineral resources. A crust of ferromanganese oxide enriched with cobalt, copper, manganese and sulphur has accumulated around the oldest reliefs. These reserves could exceed the quantities currently present on the continents, but their extraction cost remains prohibitive to be profitable. However, the situation could change in the coming decades as these resources in continental areas become more and more scarce.