NT Reporter
Panaji
The National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) on Thursday highlighted advances in deep-sea mineral exploration, marine biotechnology and ocean technology during World Environment Day and World Ocean Day programmes held at its Dona Paula campus.
Addressing scientists, researchers and officials, NIO Director Dr Sunil Kumar Singh said, “We had surveyed nearly 40,000 sqkm of the deep ocean in the Central Indian Ocean, around 1,500 km south of Sri Lanka, and identified about three lakh sq km as a region rich in polymetallic nodules.”
He said the deposits contain an estimated 400 million metric tonnes of polymetallic nodules, including around 100 million metric tonnes of manganese and about five million metric tonnes each of copper, nickel and cobalt.
Singh said these minerals would play an important role in supporting renewable energy and emerging technologies.
“For wind energy, every wind turbine requires almost 300 kg of copper. These types of rare metals are there abundantly in those polymetallic nodules,” he said. He added that such minerals are also critical for electric vehicles, mobile phones and other modern technologies.
Speaking the institute’s work in marine biotech, Singh said NIO scientists had developed methods to convert jellyfish into collagen for medical applications. He said researchers were also working on converting algae into fertilisers and other value-added products.
Singh said oceans they play a vital role in sustaining life on Earth. “Half of the oxygen we are breathing is coming from the ocean and the majority of the food is coming from the ocean,” he said.
He also announced the development of India’s first autonomous underwater vehicle capable of operating at depths of 6,000 metres. He said the technology would strengthen the country’s deep-sea exploration capabilities and help protect its interests in the ocean.
Speaking at the programme, Union Minister of State for Power and Renewable Energy Shripad Naik said oceans regulate climate, support biodiversity and provide livelihoods to millions of people.
“The ocean is not merely a vast expanse of water. It is the lifeline of our planet,” Naik said.
He said India’s coastline of more than 7,500 km supports sectors ranging from fisheries and shipping to marine biotechnology. Naik also highlighted the potential of offshore wind, tidal, wave and ocean thermal energy in the country’s transition to cleaner sources of power.
Calling on young researchers to contribute to ocean science, Naik said emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and marine robotics would play a key role in addressing challenges including climate change, marine pollution and biodiversity loss.
